HOUSTON (Covering Katy News) - A 46-year-old Huffman resident was sent to prison yesterday after being convicted of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine and U.S. Attorney Alamdar Hamdani's prosecutors revealed disturbing details at her four day trial.
Priscella Yvette Cervantes is the estranged wife of a former Harris County Precinct 1 deputy constable. A federal jury convicted her in October. The jury was so convinced by the evidence that they only deliberated for two yours before convicting her. Sentencing day was Monday, April 3, 2023.
Judge David Hittner sentenced her to a total of ten years in federal prison to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release.
In December of 2020, investigators say Cervantes escorted a tractor-trailer in a “ghost” police vehicle – which is a vehicle that has lights and sirens and a police decal. Her co-defendant and now estranged husband, Alexsandar S. Reyes, met her off Interstate 10 in his marked constable vehicle and then continued to escort the tractor trailer through the Houston area on I-10.
After the drug escort, Reyes received a total of $6,000 in cash which Cervantes believed would be split with her.
At trial, the defense attempted to convince the jury that Cervantes did not know anything about the drug proceed monies or the cocaine. The jury did not believe those claims and found her guilty as charged.
Reyes, 49, also of Huffman, had previously pleaded guilty and is pending sentencing.
Cervantes has been in custody since the return of the verdicts where she will remain pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The FBI conducted the investigation with assistance of Harris County Precinct 1 Constable’s Office, Houston Police Department and Texas Department of Public Safety.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Carolyn Ferko and Heather Winter prosecuted the case.