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San Diego, California – A second U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer based in San Diego has pleaded guilty to federal drug importation charges, underscoring a growing pattern of corruption within the nation’s border enforcement ranks.
Diego Bonillo, 30, admitted in federal court Monday that he allowed vehicles carrying fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin to pass through inspection lanes at the Otay Mesa Port of Entry. His plea—entered just as his trial was about to begin—includes charges of drug importation and conspiracy to import controlled substances. According to the plea agreement, Bonillo worked in coordination with a Mexico-based drug trafficking organization.
Bonillo’s conviction follows that of another San Diego CBP officer, Jesse Clark Garcia, who pleaded guilty weeks earlier to related charges. Federal prosecutors say the two officers used coded messages to communicate with drug traffickers, informing them of their work schedules and lane assignments to facilitate the smuggling of narcotics into the United States.
The schemes generated substantial profits for both officers. According to court documents, Garcia received “tens of thousands of dollars per vehicle” he allowed to pass. He used the illicit proceeds to finance a lifestyle well beyond a federal officer’s salary, including co-owning a horse-racing stable, purchasing multiple vehicles, building a ranch in Mexico, and buying luxury items from Burberry and Louis Vuitton.
Bonillo’s financial behavior similarly raised red flags. Prosecutors said he took numerous lavish vacations and was arrested in Las Vegas last year while attending a high-profile boxing event with expensive tickets.
Both officers are scheduled to be sentenced later this year.
While these two prosecutions have brought individual accountability, the cases highlight a broader institutional challenge for Customs and Border Protection. The agency, which is tasked with securing the nation’s borders, faces persistent vulnerabilities to corruption, particularly at high-traffic ports of entry where officers wield significant discretion and narcotics trafficking remains rampant.
The charges come amid renewed scrutiny of CBP’s internal oversight, as well as growing concerns about the ease with which powerful drug trafficking organizations infiltrate U.S. law enforcement. The plea agreements and court filings suggest that Bonillo and Garcia operated with knowledge of smuggling protocols and in communication with sophisticated criminal networks, raising urgent questions about how the agency detects and prevents insider threats.
With sentencing pending and no indication yet of further arrests, the cases are likely to intensify debate over corruption risks within the federal government’s largest law enforcement agency—and whether reforms can keep pace with the cartels’ growing reach.
