Last Updated on March 15, 2026 by The HD Post Staff

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced March 13 that a California man pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.

According to court documents, investigators identified the defendant, Manuel Alejandro Palomino Amador, 33, of San Diego, as a significant supplier of methamphetamine from Southern California to the Northern District of Florida.  

Agents surveilled the transaction in San Diego after learning of a methamphetamine shipment bound for North Florida.

Officers stopped the buyer as he returned to his home in Banning, searched his vehicle, and found 35.9 kilograms of methamphetamine.

Authorities later stopped Amador while he was driving and found 1.9 kilograms of methamphetamine and $51,166 in U.S. currency.

Investigators also found a storage facility key that led to the discovery of an additional 36.4 kilograms of methamphetamine and 4,037 grams of fentanyl.

Faces up to life in prison

U.S. Attorney John P. “Jack” Heekin said the case holds the defendant accountable for drug trafficking in the Northern District of Florida.

Amador faces up to life in prison. Sentencing is set for June 4, 2026, at 1 p.m. at the U.S. Courthouse in Pensacola before U.S. District Judge T. Kent Wetherell II.

The case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force, a multi-agency initiative established under Executive Order 14159 to investigate criminal organizations and human trafficking networks. 

The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida.

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