- Glenis Zapata, 34, allegedly moved $310,000 in drug money from Chicago
- She was arrested while dropping her son off at school in Indiana.
A former Indiana beauty queen has been accused of using her job as a flight attendant to move drug money from the United States to Mexico for a cartel.
Glenis Zapata, 34, is charged with two counts of money laundering for allegedly transporting a total of $310,000 in cocaine proceeds from Chicago in 2019, according to a federal indictment that resembles the Jackie Brown plot.
Zapata, Miss Indiana Latina 2011, was one of 18 suspects arrested in the operation, which included alleged ring leader Oswaldo Espinosa, one of the DEA’s most wanted fugitives.
Zapata’s lawyer, Michael John Petro, said The Chicago Sun-Times that the accusation has left her “devastated.”
“She dropped her son off at school and they grabbed her,” he said. “Whatever message they’re trying to send him, it’s a very strong message.”
Glenis Zapata, 34, is charged with two counts of money laundering for allegedly transporting a total of $310,000 in cocaine proceeds from Chicago in 2019.
Also among those arrested was Zapata’s sister, Ilenis Zapata, 33, a bank teller in Lafayette accused of helping the cartel launder $400,000 in drug money by exchanging smaller denomination bills for larger ones.
Bank teller Georgina Bañuelos, 39, was also charged in the DEA operation.
Espinosa, the alleged leader of the small-scale cartel known as Espinosa DTO, allegedly recruited ordinary citizens like the Zapatas to help him move thousands of kilograms of cocaine and profits from 2018 to 2013.
Zapata’s attorney, Michael John Petro, told the Chicago Sun-Times that the accusation left her “devastated.”
Zapata, Miss Indiana Latina 2011, was one of 18 suspects arrested in the raid, which included alleged ring leader Oswaldo Espinosa.
The cartel leader reportedly used semi-trailer trucks and private and commercial planes to move cash from hideouts in Chicago to southern states and Mexico.
They allegedly moved the cocaine to the United States inside legitimate packaged products transported in semi-trailers.
According to prosecutors, “Glenis Zapata possessed a ‘known crew member’ badge and used his authority to help traffickers move cash drug proceeds from the Midwest to the southern part of the United States and to Mexico,” it states. the accusation”.
The Zapata sisters were released Tuesday on $20,000 bail.
The investigation that led to his arrest began when federal officials seized a private charter plane in 2021 at Gary-Chicago International Airport in Gary, Indiana.
According to prosecutors, ‘Glenis Zapata possessed a “known crew member” badge and used his authority to help traffickers move cash proceeds from drugs.’
Pictured: Jackie Brown, played by Pam Grier, was an antagonist who smuggled money for her arms dealer boss while working as a flight attendant – a fictional story eerily similar to Zapata’s.
The indictment mentions eight drug trafficking operations between 2021 and 2023 and 15 cash transports between November 2019 and March 2022.
In 2011, Zapata gave an interview to the Journal and Courier after winning the title of Miss Indiana Latina.
She told the outlet that she was honored to win the crown and highlight the “culture and values of the Latin community.”
Zapata said, “This, along with the organization’s motto, “More than a model, a role model,” is what uniquely sets us apart for great success.”