An Oakland resident who was arrested in August and charged with selling drugs in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood has been sentenced to 48 months in prison by a federal judge.
Marcos Carcomo, 25, pleaded guilty Wednesday before Federal District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley for possession of drugs, including fentanyl.
Carcomo is the latest to be sentenced as part of an ongoing federal, state and local law enforcement effort to get a handle on drug sales in the Tenderloin.
After Carcomo's arrest in August, San Francisco police detectives and federal agents served a search warrant at his Oakland home.
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Police said they found more than 5 pounds of narcotics including:
- 2,168 grams of fentanyl
- 158 grams of base rock cocaine
- 72 grams of methamphetamine
- 30 grams of heroin
- 2 grams of cocaine salt
Police also found cash, and an unregistered ghost gun.
At Wednesday's hearing, Corley described it as "a stunning amount of drugs."
In the back and forth between Corley and Carcomo's defense counsel, it was revealed that Carcomo's half brother managed to escape arrest when police raided their house.
It is not clear if Carcomo's half brother is also wanted on drug charges, but the judge made it clear she believed Carcomo was part of a family drug dealing operation.
In considering his sentence, the judge said she had to weigh the value of deterring his brother and others from coming to the U.S. to be drug dealers.
"His brother needs to get the message that he cannot return to this country to sell drugs," Corley said.
Before she handed down his sentence, Carcomo was allowed to address the court through an interpreter.
"I've learned my lesson, and the only thing I care about is caring for my mother. And I realize that by doing this, I cant help her at all," Carcomo said.
He said he had been working for a taco truck in Oakland. According to court documents, he had told police when he was arrested that he would commute to San Francisco five days a week to sell drugs in the Tenderloin.
"There are a lot of mothers who have lost their children to fentanyl," Corley told Carcomo. "Your mother still has you."
When Carcomo is released from prison, Corley said he will be deported back to Honduras and will not be allowed to legally enter the U.S. again.
