A federal judge has sentenced Brayan Mauricio Miranda, known as “El Pozoles”, to five years in prison for drug possession with intent to distribute. The Fiscalía General de la República (FGR) identifies him as one of the leaders of the criminal organization La Unión Tepito, according to information released by the agency itself.
- Sentence: five years behind bars plus a fine, along with forfeiture of the drugs seized during his arrest.
- Arrest: Mexico City Secretariat of Citizen Security (SSC) officers detained him in October 2023 in the Roma Norte neighborhood.
- Seized drugs: 496.7 grams of marijuana, 538.3 grams of methamphetamine and 18.6 grams of cocaine, packaged in transparent plastic bags.
- Pending charge: in 2024 a second arrest warrant was issued against him for disappearance committed by private individuals.
The path to conviction
The ruling came after an oral trial in which the federal prosecutor presented evidence. The judge found Miranda criminally responsible for drug possession with intent to distribute, following a process that included the supplementary investigation stage and the trial hearing.
The sentence was set at five years in prison plus a fine. The court also ordered the confiscation of the drugs secured at the time of his detention.
Arrest in Roma Norte and shift to federal jurisdiction
Mexico City SSC officers arrested Miranda in October 2023 as he drove a vehicle through streets of the Roma Norte neighborhood. During the inspection of the car, agents found 496.7 grams of marijuana, 538.3 grams of methamphetamine and 18.6 grams of cocaine, packaged in clear plastic bags and ready for sale.
The case began in local jurisdiction. However, in January 2024, the prosecutor assigned to the Federal Prosecutor's Office in Mexico City, part of the Specialized Regional Control Prosecutor's Office (FECOR), received the corresponding declination of competence. That decision moved the investigation from local to federal jurisdiction at the supplementary investigation stage, and from then on the Federal Prosecutor's Office in Mexico City continued the process until it reached oral trial.
Outstanding accusations against El Pozoles
Before his October 2023 arrest, Miranda had already served time in the State of Mexico. After regaining his freedom, he continued operating in crimes such as extortion, kidnapping, arms trafficking and drug dealing, according to available information.
El Pozoles is allegedly linked to several disappearances in the capital and is accused as the presumed perpetrator of the death of Kenny Finol and other couples. In 2024, investigative agents executed a second arrest warrant against Miranda, this time for the crime of disappearance committed by private individuals.
That case is related to the disappearance of a young man identified as Brayan Apodaca Quintero, which occurred in 2016. “El Pozoles,” then 24 years old, pretended he was going to fill his truck with gasoline and left with the victim, who was never heard from again.
The context of La Unión Tepito
La Unión Tepito is a criminal network made up of cells operating in Mexico City. It emerged between 2009 and 2012 from deserters of the Beltrán Leyva Organization and La Familia Michoacana, according to InSight Crime.
The organization saw constant turnover in its leadership due to captures and internal disputes. Francisco Javier Hernández Gómez, “Pancho Cayagua,” was its first leader; he was killed in 2017. He was succeeded by Roberto Moyado Esparza, “El Betito,” arrested in 2018. Then Óscar Andrés Flores Ramírez, “El Lunares,” took command, captured in January 2020. Later Raúl Rojas Molina, “Mi Jefe,” led the organization, arrested in May 2022.
Eduardo Ramírez Tiburcio, “El Chori,” later became one of the group's main operators and one of the capital's most wanted criminals, with a reward of five million pesos for information leading to his capture. He was detained in March 2024.
In February 2022, then Mexico City security chief Omar García Harfuch stated that La Unión Tepito had been irreversibly fragmented after the police offensive and the successive fall of its leaders. Since then, the organization has operated divided into semi-autonomous cells without a central command.
The sentence against El Pozoles marks progress in the fight against drug dealing in the capital, although the pending case for disappearance committed by private individuals keeps open the question of the scope of investigations against him. The case also reflects federal authorities' strategy of taking over proceedings involving La Unión Tepito members to concentrate cases in federal jurisdiction and prevent arrests from being diluted at the local level.