Mexican Man, 58,

Was The Only One

Of Four Persons

Caught In Raid

By BILL JONES

Staff Writer

An illegal immigrant who was guarding a massive marijuana field in western Greene County when it was raided by Third Judicial District Drug Task Force agents on Sept. 13, 2007, was sentenced in U.S. District Court on Monday morning to 15 years (180 months) in federal prison.

Bedo Pineda-Infanti, 58, a Mexican national, had pleaded guilty last Dec. 5 to conspiracy to manufacturing 1,000, or more, marijuana plants; possessing a Glenfield Model 60 .22-caliber rifle and a Chinese-made Norinco MAC90 7.62-by-39-mm rifle in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime; and being an illegal alien in possession of firearms.

U.S. District Judge Ronnie Greer on Monday ordered Pineda-Infanti to spend five years on supervised probation after he completes his 15-year prison sentence.

A federal criminal complaint filed against Pineda-Infanti by FBI Special Agent Kevin Keithley on Sept. 18, 2007, alleged that from Sept. 1 until "on or about Sept. 13," Pineda-Infanti "and other persons, known and unknown," conspired to manufacture 1,000, or more, marijuana plants.

The complaint says that on Sept. 13, agents of the Third Judicial District Drug Task Force, who were investigating a report of a large marijuana growing operation, located Pineda-Infanti and the marijuana patch in Greene County.

The plea agreement in the case said that on Sept. 13 "a citizen of Greene County reported to law-enforcement (that) he had come upon a marijuana field."

3 Suspects Got Away

On that day according to the plea agreement, Third Judicial District Drug Task Force agents came upon the marijuana field.

"Four individuals were in the field when DTF agents arrived," the plea agreement states.

"Three individuals fled, (with) one of them dropping the Norinco MAC90 rifle. Agents found defendant Bedo Pineda-Infanti a short distance from the main marijuana patch, cultivating a marijuana plant."

None of the other three people in the field when agents raided it have been located, or charged, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Caryn Hebets.

The Glenfield Model 60 .22-caliber rifle was leaned against a tree next to the marijuana plant defendant Pineda-Infanti was cultivating, according to the plea agreement.

8,000 Marijuana Plants

The main marijuana field, according to the plea agreement, was "approximately 50 yards wide and 600 to 700 yards long" and contained an estimated 8,000 marijuana plants.

Pineda-Infanti, according to the plea agreement, admitted that he was in the United States illegally and told federal investigators that he had been recruited to guard the marijuana field and was to be paid $100 per day for doing so.

He also admitted to patrolling the marijuana field and said he had been given the .22-caliber rifle "to protect the marijuana from bandits."

Only In Area 13 Days

"Bedo Pineda-Infanti had only been in East Tennessee for approximately 13 days when he was arrested," defense attorney R. Alexander Brown wrote in a sentencing memorandum to the court.

"In hopes of a better life he entered the United States and sought work in May of 2004. In late August [2007] he was approached while working in a Chinese restaurant making $5.15 per hour and told that he could make as much as $100 a day working construction in Tennessee."

He had previous construction experience in Houston, and traveled to East Tennessee as a result, according to the defense sentencing memo. After he arrived, he met an individual who took him to the field and a nearby house. He was told that he could not leave and that there were bandits nearby. Mr. Infanti had no money and did not know where he was.

"From the time he was arrested he has cooperated and given information to the arresting agents. He met with his attorney, expressed his remorse and entered a plea of guilty. He then met with the government and gave as much information as he had," the defense sentencing memo said. "Basically, [that was] everything he knew, which was not much considering that he had only been involved for approximately two weeks."

Sons Asked Leniency

In letters sent to the court earlier this year, Pineda-Infanti's sons, Daniel Pineda and Jose Luis Pienda asked Judge Greer to show leniency in sentencing their father.

Daniel Pineda wrote that he works as a waiter in an Italian restaurant in Illinois and is studying English in a college there.

"I never saw my father consume any type of drugs, nor much less buy or carry any type of weapon," Daniel Pineda wrote. "On the contrary, during our upbringing he always insisted to me, as well as to my brothers, that we not have anything to do with anything illegal or consume any kind of drugs. He even recommended that we stay away from people who participated in these activities.

"My father is a family man, caregiver to his sons and to his mother. Indeed, his mother, who is very advanced in age, and his sister, who is handicapped, receive moral and economic help from my father. For that reason, the situation that my father is going through now has had an impact, not only on his sons, but also on those in Mexico who depend on him."

Daniel Pineda also wrote that in Mexico, his father had "dedicated his life" to agriculture.

"He worked cultivating corn, which he enjoyed and which gave meaning to his life," Daniel Pineda wrote. "His work companions always admired him as well for his dedication, honesty and enthusiasm."

Daniel Pineda also asked Judge Greer to give his father a second chance.

"I understand that my father has committed an error and, like all human beings, I feel that he deserves a second chance," Daniel Pineda wrote. "That is why I ask the judge to show leniency toward my father, taking into account that he has a reputation of being a good and decent man who, perhaps, has been a victim of circumstances."

Jose Pineda's Letter

Jose Pineda, another of Bedo Pineda's sons, also wrote a letter to the court seeking leniency for his father at sentencing.

In that letter Jose Pineda noted that his father had raised six children.

"He has always [been] a wonderful father, husband, son and grandfather," Jose Pineda wrote of Bedo Pineda. "He taught us the importance of hard work, family and good manners. One thing I am very proud of [about] my father is the fact that he built a home for his family and he also included me and my brothers [in] the project."

Jose Pineda also wrote that his father never finished elementary school in Mexico.