CAPE GIRARDEAU – Jurors on Thursday convicted Lorenzo A. Marquez, 32, and Adam A. Marquez, 27, for their role in a large-scale conspiracy to distribute significant quantities of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine to a drug-trafficking organization in Southeast Missouri.
The verdict was reached following a nine-day trial before the Honorable Stephen N. Limbaugh, Jr. at the federal courthouse in Cape Girardeau.
Evidence presented during the trial showed that the Marquez brothers were California-based suppliers of illegal drugs that were shipped to Southeast Missouri via couriers using checked baggage on commercial airlines.
Drugs and cash were seized by law enforcement officers at airports in Detroit, Memphis, and Nashville, as well as during a traffic stop in Perry County, Missouri.
During an airport seizure on March 3, 2022, three drug couriers were intercepted in Detroit on their way to Southeast Missouri with approximately 60 pounds of methamphetamine and almost three pounds of cocaine.
Lorenzo Marquez had provided the couriers with suitcases containing the drugs in Los Angeles. Evidence at trial showed that the couriers had made several flights between Southeast Missouri and Los Angeles, California, transporting drugs and cash.
The trial began on February 23. The Marquez brothers are scheduled to be sentenced on June 11, 2026. They both face a mandatory minimum of 10 years in federal prison and a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The Southeast Missouri Drug Task Force, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Mississippi County Sheriff’s Office, the Perry County Sheriff’s Office, the Charleston Department of Public Safety, the Sikeston Department of Public Safety, the Cape Girardeau Police Department, Memphis (Tennessee) Airport Police, the Nashville (Tennessee) Airport Police, the Detroit (Michigan) Airport Police, and Cobb County (Georgia) Police Department investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chris Shelton and Paul Hahn are prosecuting the case.