Federal time for drug violators

TYLER – An illegal alien and a Smith County man have been sentenced to federal prison for drug trafficking violations in East Texas, U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs announced Wednesday.
 
Daniel Garibay-Barriga, 39, an illegal alien from Mexico, and 50-year-old Craig Allen Wallace, of Tyler, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Tuesday, Garibay-Barriga was sentenced to 168 months in federal prison, Wallace was sentenced to 165 months on the same day.
 
According to information presented in court, on January 28, 2025, a search warrant was executed at Wallace’s residence on FM 724 in Tyler following a drug trafficking investigation. During the search, investigators located two outbuildings containing equipment used in a methamphetamine conversion lab, including volatile solvents, and large storage containers. In addition, investigators seized 44.71 liters of liquid containing methamphetamine in various stages of the conversion process and 9.57 kilograms of crystallized methamphetamine ready for distribution.
 
Officers also discovered an RV on the property that was being used as a makeshift drugstore stocked with methamphetamine, powder cocaine, crack cocaine, marijuana, and numerous THC products. Inside the residence, investigators located nine firearms.
 
The case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Gregg County Sheriff’s Office; and Smith County Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lucas Machicek.