DALLAS — A Dallas-Fort Worth nightclub mogul has been sentenced to 16 years in federal prison for his role in operating multiple clubs where drugs were sold openly, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham announced Monday.
In November 2021, a federal grand jury found OK Corral and Far West owner Alfredo Hinojosa guilty of managing drug premises, conspiracy to manage drug premises and conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. Hinojosa’s general manager Miguel Casas and noted promoter Martin Salvador Rodrigues were also found guilty in the crimes.
Hinojosa was sentenced on Friday, June 3 and was ordered to pay a $120,000 fine by U.S. District Judge Sam A. Lindsey.
At sentencing Friday, Judge Lindsey called Hinojosa the “top dog” in the drug scheme and said that the “buck stopped” with him.
According to evidence presented in the case, Hinojosa, along with Casas and Rodrigues, ran a conglomeration of business that brought in over $107 million in revenue during a four-year period.
Court records show, the defendants allowed cocaine to be sold in bathrooms of their nightclubs daily, which increased revenue at the club between $9 million and $12 million.
“These defendants made millions by explicitly allowing cocaine trafficking in nightclubs across DFW. They assumed that permitting bathroom drug deals would be their ‘competitive edge.’ Instead, it was their downfall,” said Meacham following the conviction.
At trial, prosecutors presented evidence of 17 controlled drug buys that happened at OK Corral Dallas, OK Corral Fort Worth and Far West nightclubs between 2013 and 2016. Half a dozen informants, under the supervision of the FBI, “bought bag after bag of cocaine from traffickers operating out of club bathrooms.”
Officials said multiple security guards and drug traffickers previously convicted in the case said Hinojosa, Casas and Rodriguez knew the trafficking was happening and allowed people to operated freely inside the clubs.
FBI agents also explained that in 2015, they installed court-ordered microphone and a camera in Hinojosa’s office. Agents obtained more than dozen wiretaps in the case. In one recording Hinojosa could be heard saying, “we can’t really clean it because then we lose business,” and “we need cocaine, man.”
“This conspiracy was designed to elevate the status of the defendants at a very high cost to our society,” FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge Matthew J. DeSarno said. “Their extensive plans to conceal nightly high-volume drug sales included the recruitment of law enforcement officers as employees. We will continue to work with our local, state, and federal partners to protect the integrity of the profession, uphold the public’s trust, and prevent access to illicit drugs in our greater Dallas-Fort Worth communities.”
Hinojosa, Casas and Rodriguez eventually confessed to know that the drug sales were ongoing and allowed, according to court documents. Hinojosa’s 45-interview was played for jury before he was sentence.
The case into the drug conspiracy involved more than 30 defendants, all of whom have been convicted, including former Dallas police officers Eddie Villarreal and Craig Woods.
In April 2022, Villarreal was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for lying to federal agents about his role obstructing the FBI investigation into Hinojosa.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Dallas Field Office and the Dallas Police Department conducted the investigation, which was dubbed “Operation Closing Time.” The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission's Enforcement Division, IRS – Criminal Investigations, and the Texas Attorney General’s Office provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorneys P.J. Meitl, Nicole Dana, and Melanie Smith prosecuted the case.
