SHERMAN, Texas – A former midfielder for Colombia’s national soccer team has been sentenced in a Texas courtroom to more than 11 years in prison for drug trafficking, according to U.S.
prosecutors. Jhon Viafara was sentenced during a hearing in federal court in Sherman, Texas, on Wednesday. Viafara, 42, a native of Robles, Colombia, pleaded guilty in November to conspiracy to import 5 kilograms or more of cocaine into the United States.
He had been extradited to the U.S. in January 2020. Prosecutors accused Viafara of conspiring with members of the Gulf Cartel to organize cocaine shipments that left Colombia on speedboats and went to Mexico before ultimately ending up in the U.S.