3 men allegedly sent by cartel to kidnap Tyler man in front of his family

TYLER, Texas (KLTV) – Three men have been arrested in connection with the kidnapping of a Tyler man who they say owed $80,000 to a cartel in Juarez. A document alleges that one of the suspects owns the restaurant at Tyler Pounds Airport and crossed the border multiple times, allegedly bringing drugs for a narcotics ring that has drawn the attention of federal agencies. KLTV obtained a statement of probable cause from one of the suspects through an open records request filed with the 114th District Court. Details are given regarding the charges against all three.

On March 17, a couple and their two sons were about to leave for a family gathering when a red Honda HRV pulled into the driveway of a home on FM 2015 in Tyler, according to testimony. Two men came out and allegedly held a gun to the father’s head and forced him into their car.

The man’s sons followed the Honda until it pulled up in front of a store on Highway 271. The affidavit states that the suspects got out of the vehicle, showed the gun and warned their son not to follow. The men allegedly said they needed to send $10,000 if they wanted their father back, and soon the family received a call from the victim’s phone demanding the money.

Authorities called the suspects’ cell phone number to find out they were heading west toward Dallas. When detectives interviewed their son, they described the driver, later identified as Julio Cesar Cordova, 48, as skinny with a short beard, wearing a hat, long-sleeved shirt, orange/brown vest, armed with a silver handgun. They described the passenger, Walybert Eron Cordova-Rascon, 39, as overweight, wearing yellow sunglasses and a black hoodie with the sleeves rolled up to reveal arms covered in tattoos. They claimed Cordova-Rascon was carrying a black handgun.

The suspects continued to call the victim’s wife in the car, talking over a speakerphone, the affidavit states. When his wife told them she didn’t have $10,000, they adjusted the request to $5,000 and then to “as much as she could raise,” according to the document.

When a cell phone signal indicated the suspects had stopped at a gas station in Fort Worth, local police located the vehicle and stopped it. Officers found the victim in the backseat and detained the suspects, then pulled the car into the police parking lot for investigation, the affidavit states. Police said the car was registered as a rental, and a search turned up two guns matching the previous description, as well as drugs and an apparent tracking device.

Also found in the vehicle was a notebook containing the victim’s name, address, family information and a note about “11 birds” and “80 grand,” the affidavit said. Detectives noted that “birds” is a common drug term used to indicate weight in kilograms, so the book implies that the victim was 11kg of a particular drug and owed $80,000 to someone.

Detectives found text conversations on the victim’s phone about owing a certain amount of money to an unknown Mexican number, as well as text evidence of narcotics buying and selling, the affidavit said. The victim still claimed he didn’t know the two men who appeared in his driveway and said he got in the car because they threatened to shoot his family if he didn’t get in. After the kidnapping, Walybert said Cordova-Rascon consumed meth in the backseat while driving.

Julio Cordova allegedly denied kidnapping the victim when detectives spoke with him, and Walybert Cordova-Rascon said the two, who are cousins, had traveled to Houston from Colorado on business. The Smith County Sheriff’s Office reports Julio Cordova lives in Albuquerque, NM, while Walybert Cordova-Rascon is from Strasburg, CO. They refused to say more when detectives asked to search their phones.

Both were arrested March 18 on charges of aggravated kidnapping for ransom and booked into the Smith County Jail. Indictments show Julio Cordova’s bond was set at $750,000 and Walybert Cordova-Rascon’s bond was set at $450,000. Walybert was released on bail on April 15 following a follow-up interview with detectives.

In the interview, he described the kidnappings in detail, starting with being told to target the victim, the affidavit states. Walybert Cordova-Rascon claimed the information came from the La Linea cartel in Juarez, Mexico, to which the victim owed money. Cordova-Rascon said Tyler had a connection that could lead him to the victim.

The affidavit says the man was known by the fake name “Glesias” and that the cousins ​​met him at a gas station on Loop 323 in Tyler on the day of the kidnapping. Glesias drove them to the victim’s home, pulled up his gray SUV and pointed at the house with his finger, the affidavit states. Cordova-Rascon said he drove away as the red Honda turned into the driveway.

Cordova-Rascon said La Linea claimed the victim was in possession of a large sum of money after working with a different cartel. He claimed that during phone conversations in the car, conditions were met and a “repayment timeline” was established.

Detectives then turned their attention to identifying “Glesias,” whom the victim knew but did not know his real name, according to the affidavit. The document describes him as tall, extremely thin, with a face “sunken in as if he were on drugs” and an eye that “rolled to the side when he looked at you.”

Authorities said they located Glesias’ number using the victim’s phone records and extracted details of a user phone that was active from Jan. 31 to March 29, showing location data in the area of ​​Cambridge Road and Townhouse Drive in Tyler, as well as multiple visits. Tyler Pounds Regional Airport.

Detectives contacted neighbors in the area where he was located, and neighbors realized his description matched 41-year-old Brandon Markeith Jeffrey. Neighbors reported that Jeffrey had been renting a residence there for about 1 1/2 years and owned the Mile High restaurant in Tyler Pounds, the arrest affidavit states. Authorities said they found surveillance video from two Walmarts in Tyler that showed Jeffrey driving the gray vehicle Cordova-Rascon described.

During the investigation, detectives said they found evidence of seven border crossings between 2020 and 2023, as well as recordings of a 2018 robbery in which Jeffrey admitted to taking four kilos of cocaine across the border. The affidavit states that those being investigated for drug or firearms trafficking include individuals handling narcotics conspiracy cases from multiple local, state and federal agencies across the United States.

Authorities also said the phone contained a message from an undercover detective with the Smith County Sheriff’s Office that read, “This is what gets everyone.”

An arrest warrant was issued for Jeffrey on October 23 and he was booked into the Smith County Jail on October 24. He is charged with accessory to aggravated kidnapping, with bail set at $750,000.

Julio Cordova and Walybert Cordova-Rascon were indicted on June 20 and a plea hearing is scheduled for Nov. 6 before Judge Taylor Heaton.

KLTV reached out to his lawyers. One said he didn’t have any comments at this time, and the other said he hadn’t responded yet. The court said no letter of representation had yet been received for Jeffrey.

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