California prison guard charged with smuggling 20 kilos of cocaine

The correctional officer, Jesus Reyes, was charged with conspiring to sell drugs, possessing drugs for sale and transporting drugs across county lines. Reyes, 45, has yet to enter a plea and it was unclear Friday if he was represented by a lawyer.

According to a statement from Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman, Reyes in 2023 drove the cocaine from Mexico to a home rented by Jose Luis Aldahir Rocha Luque.

Luque, 27, who faces the same charges as Reyes, allegedly maintained the house to store drugs and money. It wasn’t clear if he was represented by an attorney.

When authorities from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration searched the home on Aug. 1, 2023, they found 20 kilograms of cocaine and $179,680 in cash, according to Hochman’s statement and a DEA forfeiture notice.

“It is reprehensible that a state corrections officer can be seduced by greed and manipulated by others to commit such crimes that endanger the public,” Hochman said in the statement.

Greg Risling, a spokesman for the district attorney’s office, declined to say why prosecutors didn’t bring charges against Reyes and Luque for nearly three years. He directed questions about Reyes’ employment to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, which didn’t immediately respond.

Reyes’ prosecution comes two months after a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation lieutenant was arrested on federal charges that alleged he smuggled cellphones into Salinas Valley State Prison in exchange for $100,000. Matthew Madsen, 39, has pleaded not guilty to conspiring to commit honest services fraud and remains free on bond.

Salinas Valley has become one of the most violent lockups in the state. Five inmates were killed at the Monterey County prison in 2025, and two more have been killed this year.