U.S. Magistrate Judge Dorina Ramos set bond at $100,000 Friday for Mission Police officer Jonathan Trevino, 29, and Hidalgo County Sheriff’s deputies Fabian Rodriguez, 28, and Gerardo Duran, 30. The same bond was set a day earlier for their alleged co-conspirator Mission Police officer Alexis Espinoza.
Ramos said it was unlikely that pre-trial services could arrange for their release if any of the men posted bond before Monday.
Prosecutors say the four were members of a task force called the Panama Unit that fights drug trafficking. Instead of combatting the drug trade, prosecutors say the four provided protection for it.
Trevino is the son of Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Trevino. Espinoza is the son of Hidalgo Police Chief Rodolfo “Rudy” Espinoza.
Sheriff Lupe Trevino, dressed in a sport coat and jeans, sat in court with other family members Friday. After the hearing, federal agents who worked the case filed out of the first row of seats in the courtroom, stopping to shake hands with him.
“It’s hard, those FBI agents are friends of mine,” the elder Trevino said, visibly emotional.
The news that the men would likely not be able to leave custody before Monday came as a disappointment. Trevino said they had spent Thursday trying to meet the conditions of bond. Ramos said if they post bond they will be on home detention and monitored electronically, allowed to leave home for work, religious services and court appearances. Ramos urged them to find work outside of law enforcement as soon as possible.
On Friday, the three lawmen stood among a group of 15 men making their initial appearances on a variety of felony charges. They stood motionless as Ramos read their charges for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and noted that if convicted they could face from 10 years to life in prison.