Fourth Honduran Extradited To U.S. Over Tenderloin Trafficking Charges

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Another Honduran man was extradited earlier this week to the U.S. over charges of drug trafficking in San Francisco, marking the fourth in a case against 14 people who allegedly pushed large quantities of illegal drugs in the city.

In a statement, the U.S. Attorney's Office said that Victor Viera-Chirinos, 42, arrived in the U.S. on Wednesday to be sentenced for a charge set out in a August 2019 indictment. He was initially charged by criminal complaint on July 29, 2019, with allegations that he was involved in a conspiracy to distribute drugs in the Tenderloin District. A federal grand jury indicted him on Aug. 8, 2019, accusing him as one of 14 people who moved large quantities of heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine base, and cocaine in the district.

Viera-Chirinos allegedly collected "rent" for street-level dealers who paid his organization for housing while being involved in their drug trafficking activities. He was ensured that these pushers were supplied with drugs for their trafficking activities, prosecutors said.

On Jan. 27, 2021, Viera-Chirinos pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine base, and cocaine. In his plea agreement, he described his role in the drug trafficking organization. He said that no later than June 2018, he had a deal with other people to distribute heroin, meth, cocaine base, and cocaine to street-level dealers, who sold the drugs in San Francisco, including in the Tenderloin District.

Viera-Chirinos confessed that the total weight of drugs he was involved with in distributing was an amount over 1,775 kilograms of converted weight.

He was initially scheduled to be sentenced on June 2, 2021. But one week before that, he fled to Honduras.

"The Justice Department's Office of International Affairs worked with Honduran authorities to secure the arrest and extradition of Viera-Chirinos," the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Viera-Chirinos is scheduled to appear in court on May 15 for further legal proceedings. His sentencing has not yet been scheduled, federal prosecutors said.

In February, Honduras extradited three of its citizens to the U.S. over federal felony charges that they were involved in separate conspiracies to sell illegal drugs in the Tenderloin District . The three Hondurans were Jorge Alberto Viera-Chirinos, 34; Mayer Benegas-Medina, 30; and Elmer Bonilla Matute, 34.


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