Final Defendant in Drug Trafficking Organization Operating in Maury and Lewis Counties Sentenced to 70 Months in Federal Prison

NASHVILLE - Julio Esparza, 47, of Alamo, Texas, was sentenced yesterday to 70 months in federal prison, followed by 5 years of supervised release, and a $1,031,600 money judgment, announced United States Attorney Henry C. Leventis.

In December 2022, Esparza pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute cocaine, crack cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana. The conviction stems from Esparza's involvement in a large-scale drug trafficking organization that was responsible for distributing substantial quantities of controlled substances, including cocaine and marijuana, from Texas to Tennessee between 2015 and 2019. Esparza hired his codefendants Freddy Quinones and Jesus Silva to transport the narcotics to Tennessee, and the drugs ended up in the hands or under the control of other codefendants in Tennessee, including Brent Burns, Henry Davis, and Brandon Dailey, who further distributed them within Tennessee. The individuals in Tennessee sent substantial drug proceeds, which Quinones and Silva also transported, back to Esparza in Texas.

The other individuals charged in the indictment with Julio Esparza have all pled guilty and were previously sentenced, as follows:

• Terry Strayhorn, 43, of Columbia, Tennessee, was sentenced to 150 months in prison followed by 8 years of supervised release
• Brent Burns, 40, of Columbia, Tennessee, was sentenced to 120 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release
• Derrick Nixon, 55, of Mount Pleasant, Tennessee, was sentenced to 120 months in prison followed by 8 years of supervised release
• Vincent Conner, 40, of Mount Pleasant, Tennessee, was sentenced to 100 months in prison followed by10 years of supervised release
• Tory Hardison, 29, of Pulaski, Tennessee, was sentenced to 100 months in prison followed by 4 years of supervised release
• Tristen Tisby, 32, of Columbia, Tennessee, was sentenced to 84 months in prison followed by 4 years of supervised release
• Samuel Abernathy, 46, of Mount Pleasant, Tennessee, was sentenced to 75 months in prison followed by 4 years of supervised release
• Henry Davis, 44, of Mount Pleasant, Tennessee, was sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release
• Freddy Quinones, 50, of Pembroke, Kentucky, was sentenced to 24 months in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release
• Shanika Odom, 34, of Mount Pleasant, Tennessee, was sentenced to 20 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release
• Jesus Silva, 42, of Harlingen, Texas, was sentenced to 15 months in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release
• Carson Lunn, 27, of Rogersville, Alabama, was sentenced to 6 months in prison followed by 3 years of supervised release

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Memphis Division, Columbia Resident Agency; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Columbia Police Department; the Hohenwald Police Department; the Spring Hill Police Department; and the Williamson County Sheriff's Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert S. Levine and Nani M. Gilkerson prosecuted the case.

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