Introduction to the Case
George Mejia is no Pablo Escobar. But they have one thing in common: they were both betrayed by a now 74-year-old informant – one whose work for Hialeah Police is being attacked by lawyers seeking to have convictions vacated or sentences reduced.
The Informant’s Role
A month after NBC6 Investigates revealed evidence the informant violated his contract with police, Miami-Dade assistant state attorney Jared Octala cited that report in persuading a judge to end probation 10 years early for Mejia, one of 115 alleged cocaine traffickers the informant helped lure to Hialeah, according to police reports. “This is involved with the confidential informant that was in Hialeah which I’m sure you read the news articles that have come out,” Octala told Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Jason Bloch, explaining why the state wanted to drop the remaining 10 years from Mejia’s 12-year probation sentence for cocaine trafficking.
Investigation and Review
Bloch said he had not seen or read the NBC6 report and wanted to know more. “It doesn’t just revolve around this case. It’s conduct from all the cases I’ve got involved with this confidential informant,” Octala said. “There’s been enough attention that’s been brought to these cases and to the state’s attention to begin to investigate and review them." Bloch probed further during the Aug. 18 hearing. “You’ve heard allegations of wrongful government conduct when it came to the police department and its agents in the form of informants, is that correct?" Bloch asked. “Allegations?"
Informant’s Payment and Police Conduct
The informant, who we’ll call “Jose” to protect him and his family, wound up collecting $9,750 of the $39,326 confiscated from Mejia in that December 2020 sting, according to confidential police records reviewed by NBC6 Investigates. Over more than six years, Hialeah Police paid Jose more than $640,000 – 24% of the money seized from the suspects he trapped, those records reveal. The remaining $2.1 million was supposed to go to the City of Hialeah to pay for police equipment and services.
Missing City Funds
But in a June 2025 affidavit charging former Hialeah Police chief Sergio Velazquez with grand theft, money laundering and organized fraud, investigators allege $3.6 million in city funds is missing or unaccounted for during Velazquez’s tenure as chief from 2012 to November 2021. The affidavit states $1 million of that cash was confiscated in drug forfeiture cases, including some involving Jose, police and court records show. Velazquez has pled not guilty.
Reverse Stings and Entrapment
Such operations, known as “reverse stings,” are legal, as long as they do not involve entrapment, coercion, threats and the like. And courts have ruled confidential informants may get a cut of the cash seized, as long as it’s not contingent on their testimony in court or a successful prosecution.
Miami-Dade Corrections
Booking photo of Sergio Velasquez
Ongoing Investigations and Appeals
In 2023, assistant public defender Matlin Brown got prosecutors to drop charges against one of her clients and three co-defendants after accusing Jose in her motion to dismiss of lying about his connection to the supposed broker who referred the suspects to him. Brown investigated further and discovered the broker was actually Jose’s brother. Both brothers were arrested in 1987 in Operation Pisces, what was then the largest undercover cocaine trafficking and money laundering investigation in history, according to the DEA. Jose flipped on the Medellin cartel and served only six years in prison, followed by placement in witness protection; his brother though was convicted at trial and sentenced 25 years in prison.
Conclusion
The cases tied to the informant who fueled the Hialeah Police cash machine are being challenged, with lawyers seeking to have convictions vacated or sentences reduced. The state attorney’s office has not responded to repeated emails asking them to explain the difference between “reviewing” and “investigating.” Brown said there should be more justice to come for those Jose may have set up. “There are people who are still actively suffering,” she told NBC6. “We’re not even talking about criminal records and probation, but people who are actively serving time, hard time over these cases, over what this informant did, what the Hialeah Police department did. It’s incredibly unfair.”
FAQs
Q: Who is the informant in question?
A: The informant is a 74-year-old man known as "Jose" to protect him and his family.
Q: How much did Jose collect from the confiscated money?
A: Jose collected $9,750 of the $39,326 confiscated from Mejia in the December 2020 sting.
Q: What is the total amount of money paid to Jose by Hialeah Police?
A: Over more than six years, Hialeah Police paid Jose more than $640,000.
Q: How much money is missing or unaccounted for from the City of Hialeah?
A: Investigators allege $3.6 million in city funds is missing or unaccounted for during Velazquez’s tenure as chief.
Q: What is the status of the cases involving Jose?
A: Lawyers are seeking to have convictions vacated or sentences reduced, and some cases are currently under review or appeal.
