Luis Valle Valle revealed how drug trafficking dominated the Honduran coast

Luis Valle Valle stood before the jury in the Eastern District Court of Virginia and did not hesitate in his voice.

He decided to confess how he operated alongside Arnulfo Fagot Máximo, sentenced to 33 years in prison for leading a drug trafficking organization that smuggled thousands of kilos of cocaine into the  United States .

The leader of the Valle Valle gang said he agreed to give his testimony in exchange for a possible reduction of the two sentences that keep him behind bars in the United States.

He revealed how the drug trafficking network that turned Honduras into a key point for cocaine trafficking operated.

His beginnings

In his story, Luis Valle Valle began by saying that he started in the drug world in 1997, when he was just beginning to travel the dusty roads of La Mosquitia, a region forgotten by many, but which became the gateway for tons of drugs coming from Colombia and Venezuela .

“We were good friends , ” he said, referring to the Montes Bobadilla clan, with whom he said he built an empire that stretched across sea, land and air.

“That’s where the drugs arrived. Sometimes the Navy followed us, but that was the place we had to go. We went to certain areas, but we also bought for ourselves in the communities of La Mosquitia, La Barrita and around Nicaragua ,” Valle said.

Valle Valle explained that his first steps in the drug business began with small quantities: 10, 60 kilos, until the business grew.

“I sold it in Guatemala . At first I paid in lempiras and dollars, but later it was only in US dollars. In 2001 we were already buying up to 500 kilos ,” he said.

“We dealt with several members of the Montes family, first Tito, then Tom. Sometimes Chinda, Tito’s wife, answered our calls,” he said.

The rise of business

According to Luis Valle, his criminal activities led him to prison in 2001, where he spent four years.

However, after leaving in 2005, he took over the business with his brother. By then, they were already trafficking between 500 and 1,000 kilos of cocaine .

“The drugs came from Colombia and Venezuela, passed through Barrita and then arrived in France, in Colón, where we picked them up,” he explained.

He added that Francia, a town on the Atlantic coast of Honduras, was strategic for drug trafficking because of its maritime and air access .

The criminal organization was controlled by Tito Montes Bobadilla until his death, after which his brother Tom took over the leadership.

“France was a key place. They had properties there and the terrain was flat, which allowed planes to land,” Valle said.

A wide criminal network

Luis Alonso also admitted to having worked with Los Cachiros, another criminal group from Tocoa, Colón .

“We started collaborating with them in 2000. They sold us drugs and also helped us transport cocaine from France to Copán ,” he said.

This alliance lasted until 2014, facilitating the transportation of drugs through Guatemala and Mexico , until they reached the United States.

“The money we received was always in dollars. We had a lot of control in the area, but the DEA always worried us,” he revealed.

The payment mechanism

The drug trafficker described how the money obtained was moved through land routes, helicopters and bank transfers in Guatemala.

“We delivered the money to Tom Montes. There were also people like Bebé and Flaco, who handled the money transfers to Colombia and Venezuela. José Manuel Morales, alias ‘el Che’ , was our main contact in Guatemala,” he explained.

Health problems

During the trial, when the prosecution asked him to identify Arnulfo Fagot Máximo in the courtroom, Valle was unable to do so.

He explained that his vision is severely affected by diabetes and that in prison he does not receive the insulin necessary for his treatment.

“They only give me pills, but my sugar level is always high,” she complained. Judge O’Grady, after hearing the situation, ordered that she be provided with adequate medical care to ensure her health.

Luis Valle Valle, despite having fallen into disgrace, became a key player for the US authorities.

This man revealed the intricate details of the criminal network that operated for more than a decade and connected multiple countries in drug trafficking to the north.