Erick Manuel Ochoa Villagrán, alias “La Perica” was sentenced to 210 months in federal prison – 17 years and six months – in the United States for conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine. identified by US authorities identify Ochoa as a lieutenant of Juan José Morales Cifuentes, alleged ringleader of the Los Pochos drug trafficking structure and husband of the mayor of Ayutla, San Marcos, Isel Anelí Súñiga Morfín.
According to United States court records, the sentence was imposed on December 9, 2025 by the District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.
The conviction stems from an investigation that identified a drug trafficking organization that operated in South America, Central America and North America since at least 2008 and was responsible for importing large quantities of cocaine into the United States.
In May 2025, the court accepted Ochoa Villagrán’s guilty plea and found him responsible for the charge of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine.
Chief lieutenant
The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) included Ochoa Villagrán in a sanction issued on February 28, 2024 against members of The Pochoswith operations on the border of Ayutla, San Marcos.
In that document, US authorities stated that Erick Manuel Ochoa Villagrán “is another drug trafficker established in Guatemala who works for Morales Cifuentes and Los Pochos.”
OFAC also noted that Ochoa Villagrán “is one of Morales Cifuentes’ top lieutenants and provides storage for cocaine shipments.”
According to US investigations, between 2008 and June 2021, Ochoa Villagrán participated in activities related to the organization’s drug trafficking in Guatemala and other countries in the region.
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The structure of Los Pochos
Los Pochos emerged under the command of Erik Salvador Súñiga Rodríguez, alias “El Pocho”, former mayor of Ayutla, San Marcos, who was accused by US authorities of controlling drug trafficking activities on the border between Guatemala and Mexico.
After his extradition to the United States in 2019, Súñiga Rodríguez died in prison in April 2020.
Subsequently, US authorities identified Juan José Morales Cifuentes as the structure’s successor.
OFAC describes him as “the ringleader of Los Pochos since 2019” and states that he is “a cocaine distributor and transportation coordinator based in Guatemala and linked to the Sinaloa cartel.”
Morales Cifuentes is married to Isel Anelí Súñiga Morfín, current mayor of Ayutla.
In the same designation, OFAC assured that Morales Cifuentes “takes advantage of his political connections through his wife, Isel Anelí Súñiga Morfín, the mayor of Ayutla, to protect the interests of Los Pochos,” according to United States documents.
The capture of “La Perica”
Ochoa Villagrán was captured in Guatemala in December 2023 in compliance with an extradition request presented by the United States.
The federal indictment indicated that he was part of an organization responsible for moving cocaine through South America, Central America and North America, and for importing drug shipments to the United States.
The sentence is part of the actions taken by the US authorities against members of Los Pochos, an organization that operated for years on the border between Guatemala and Mexico and whose members have been linked by the United States to international cocaine trafficking activities.
Armed Municipal Police
In January 2024, after the capture and extradition of Juan José Morales Cifuentes to the United States, the administration of Mayor Isel Anelí Súñiga Morfín, awarded the purchase of 15 .223 caliber carbines and ammunition for Q411 thousand to equip that municipal security body.
According to Guatecompras records, the commune awarded in January 2024 the purchase of 15 .223 caliber carbines and ammunition for an amount of Q411 thousand.
Subsequently, the then Minister of the Interior, Francisco Jiménez, reported that the ministry began a legal analysis on the legality of this type of purchases, due to doubts related to the functions that armed municipal security forces can perform.