A man who took part in a drug trafficking conspiracy that led to the murders of two people, including a pregnant woman, was sentenced in San Diego federal court Thursday to 40 years in prison.
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Benjamin Madrigal-Birrueta, 25, pleaded guilty to his role in the 2022 deaths of Cesar Armando Murillo, 44, and Maira Sofia Hernandez, 33, a married couple who were gunned down and buried near a ranch in Yakima, Wash.
Prosecutors say Madrigal-Birrueta fatally shot Murillo, then about a week later, lured Hernandez to the ranch with the promise of reuniting her with her husband. Once there, she was fatally shot by unidentified co-conspirators.
Hernandez was six months pregnant at the time, and her child in utero also died.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said both the defendant and victims were involved in a Yakima-based drug trafficking enterprise that involved using stolen vehicles to smuggle drugs through San Diego-area ports of entry.
Prosecutors allege Madrigal-Birrueta held a leadership role in the trafficking organization, though his defense attorneys disputed in court that his position was as significant as prosecutors claim. The attorneys argued he did not enter the drug trafficking world willingly and only did so out of desperation to support his family.
Defense attorney Jason Conforti argued Murillo was shot in what’s known as imperfect self-defense, in which a person believes they are acting to defend themselves, but that belief was not reasonable.
As for Hernandez, he argued Madrigal-Birrueta’s only role was to bring her to the ranch, but he had no knowledge or expectation that it would lead to her death.
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The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the investigation into the organization began when a car registered to Hernandez was stopped by police, searched and 150,000 fentanyl pills were found inside.
Soon after that traffic stop, federal agents spoke with Murillo and Hernandez.
Prosecutors said Madrigal-Birrueta later spoke with Murillo and Hernandez, and they told him they were going to cooperate with the investigation.
“He told the couple, ‘You’re not going to leave me with this,’ and stormed out of the house, slamming the door,” prosecutors said in a sentencing memorandum. He “made good on his threat,” they added.
The victims’ bodies were not found until more than a year after the killings, buried in unmarked graves near the Yakima ranch.
Also charged in the case was Ricardo Orizaba-Zendejas, who prosecutors say worked as Madrigal-Birrueta’s “trusted lieutenant,” drug dealer and debt collector.
Orizaba-Zendejas was convicted by a federal jury of drug and firearm offenses connected to the drug trafficking organization and was sentenced earlier this year to 20 years in prison.
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