Arellano Felix Cartel Leader Benjamin Arellano Felix Pleads California Judge for Early Release From Prison

The leader of the Arellano Felix drug cartel, Benjamin Arellano Felix, has asked a California judge to free him from prison, serving only 10 years of his prison term.

Arellano Felix cited humanitarian and compassionate reasons, as reported by Fox 5 San Diego News.

The cartel leader was sentenced to 25 years of prison time after agreeing to a plea bargain in April 2012.

Aside from his prison sentence, he was also ordered to pay $100 million to the U.S. government.

Federal prosecutors were pursuing racketeering and conspiracy to launder money charges against Arellano Felix.

They also claimed that the cartel boss had led one of Mexico's largest drug trafficking organizations for more than 15 years. Prosecutors noted that he was instrumental in delivering "hundreds of tons of cocaine and marijuana" to the U.S.

Court documents revealed that Arellano Felix and his cartel also corrupted law enforcement, military leaders, and politicians in Mexico.

Prosecutors argued in court that the cartel boss has destroyed lives and caused suffering on both ends of the border.

A judge has yet to decide whether Arellano Felix's request for an early release from prison will be granted.

A motion obtained by CBS 8 showed that Arellano Felix wrote that he was sickened to look back to the day in which his acts were made public news.

He added that he cannot change his past, but noted that he "can indeed walk forward and cure as much as possible by providing [for] those in need."

Benjamin Arellano Felix's Prison Sentence

The 25-year-sentence of Arellano Felix met the requested term from prosecutors. However, the sentence was lighter than expected.

BBC News reported that his lawyer was fired two weeks before sentencing. It was done without giving any explanation to the U.S. judge. It earlier created speculations that Arellano Felix may be having second thoughts about his plea deal.

In Mexico, Arellano Felix was sentenced in 2007 to 22 years in prison for drug trafficking and organized crime charges. He was then extradited to the United States four years later.

The cartel boss led the Arellano Felix cartel from 1989 until his arrest in 2002, wherein he was accused of overseeing drug trafficking operations, kidnapping, as well as the murder of rival traffickers, informants, and members of security forces.

Arellano Felix Drug Cartel

Arellano Felix cartel, also known as the Tijuana cartel, is led by Enedina Arellano Felix. She is known as "La Narcomami."

Enedina is a sister of the cartel's founding members. Initially, she was known to handle much of the organization's financial operation and money laundering, according to an InsightCrime report.

The group mainly operates in Tijuana, which is located on the U.S.-Mexico border. It has a strategic location for smuggling drugs into Southern California.

Evidence showed that the Tijuana cartel had created an alliance with the Jalisco Cartel, with the two groups eyeing to challenge the Sinaloa Cartel's hegemony in the border state of Baja California.

Its founding members were known to be Sinaloans who used to work with Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo, who is known for creating the Guadalajara cartel.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Raw: Mexico Drug Cartel Boss Extradited to U.S. - from Associated Press