Aliases: “Armando Gonzalez Apushana,” “Gordito Gonzalez” Date of Birth: October 19, 1959/1962
Place of Birth: Maicao, Colombia
Height: 5’5″, Weight: 190 lbs
Eyes: Brown, Hair: Brown
Hermagoras Gonzalez Polanco operated his own drug trafficking organization (DTO) often referred to as the Guajira Cartel. From 1998 to the present, Gonzalez Polanco and his partner, Salomon Camacho Mora, were responsible for sending many tons of cocaine to the United States, including as much as 9 metric tons between 1999 and 2000 alone. Gonzalez Polanco and Camacho reportedly have strong ties to Dominican drug trafficking organizations, which make payments for the drugs to Camacho and Gonzalez Polanco through an elaborate money laundering operation. The Guajira Cartel is known to use violence, intimidation, extortion, and murder to further their organization’s success. Gonzalez Polanco was also reportedly a member of the Autodefensas de Campesinos de La Guajira (AUC), and, in that capacity, reportedly transported weapons from Europe through Venezuela to Colombia to support AUC activities. The AUC is designated by the United States as a foreign terrorist organization.
In 2002, Gonzalez Polanco was indicted in the District of New Jersey for money laundering violations. A superseding indictment was issued in 2005 against Gonzalez Polanco, Camacho and other associates for the original money laundering charges as well as conspiracy to distribute cocaine. In addition to the criminal charges in these indictments, Gonzalez Polanco was also indicted in 2004 in the Southern District of New York for drug trafficking violations. Gonzalez Polanco is also a fugitive in Colombia for charges involving his alleged role in a 2002 murder. On March 8, 2008, Gonzalez Polanco was arrested by Venezuelan authorities.