The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California announced on Thursday that a former U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer was sentenced to 15 years in prison after allowing at least 15 vehicles to transport illegal drugs across the southern border without inspection.

In a Thursday press release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California confirmed that 31-year-old Diego Bonillo, a former U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer, was sentenced on charges of conspiracy to import controlled substances and the importation of controlled substances after helping a Mexican drug trafficking organization to smuggle fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin into the United States.

“Former CBP Officer Diego Bonillo allowed massive amounts of drugs into the U.S. without regard for the deadly consequences it could have on our communities,” Mark Dargis, special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s field office in San Diego, said. “He disgraced the badge and violated his oath to protect the American people. This conduct betrays the public’s trust and is contradictory to the values and standards expected of a federal law enforcement officer.”

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The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California said that the former Customs and Border Protection official admitted that he was paid by a Mexican drug trafficking organization to use his position to allow vehicles to transport drugs across the southern border without inspection. According to the press release, Bonillo allowed at least 75 kilograms of fentanyl, 11.7 kilograms of methamphetamine and more than 1 kilogram of heroin to be smuggled into the country.

Sentencing documents show that investigators determined that the former Customs and Border Protection officer used a second phone to share his lane assignments with members of the Mexican drug trafficking organization so that the organization would know which lane to use and what time to have smugglers transport the illegal drugs across the southern border into the United States.

Thursday’s press release explained that Bonillo’s involvement in the drug trafficking organization’s scheme started no later than October 2023 and continued through April of 2024. Law enforcement officials noted that the money Bonillo received from the drug trafficking organization was used by the former Customs and Border Protection officer to buy luxury gifts, to travel internationally, and to try to purchase property in Mexico.

“This sentence holds Bonillo accountable for betraying the public trust,” U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon stated. “He weaponized his badge for personal profit, funneling deadly narcotics through a port of entry and putting communities at risk. Corruption like this will be met with the full force of the law — and we will not hesitate to pursue and punish those who trade duty for dollars.”