Alvaro Salinas Jr., 45, will spend the next 11 years and 8 months in federal prison. Police found meth and a hidden gun in his SUV in Pharr last December. A federal judge handed down the sentence this month.

Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane sentenced Salinas to 140 months in prison. That works out to 11 years and 8 months. After he gets out, Salinas must spend 3 more years on supervised release. The case is one more sign of a trend. Federal courts in South Texas are coming down hard on people caught with drugs and guns at the same time.

Salinas already had a long criminal record. Court records show he had prior convictions for drug trafficking. He also had convictions for transporting people illegally into the country and for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Judge Crane pointed to that record in court. He said Salinas seemed unable to live a law abiding life.

The case started on December 7, 2025. Pharr police got a call about an unconscious driver blocking the road. Officers found Salinas asleep behind the wheel of a Nissan Rogue in the middle of the street. When they tried to wake him up, he woke up fighting.

Salinas got combative right away, police said. He tried to flee the SUV with the doors still open. He fought with officers as they tried to arrest him. At one point, he tried to bite them. Officers finally got him in handcuffs after the struggle.

Once Salinas was in custody, officers searched his Nissan Rogue. They found about 127 grams of methamphetamine inside a large plastic bag. That is close to a third of a pound of meth, enough for hundreds of doses. Officers also found a gun. It was hidden inside the driver side door panel, within easy reach of the seat.

Because Salinas is a convicted felon, he is not allowed to own or carry a gun under federal law. Combining that gun with the meth in his SUV led to two federal charges. He was charged with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. He was also charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Salinas pleaded guilty to both charges on April 27, 2026. He was sentenced on August 6, 2026, in federal court in the Rio Grande Valley. The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case. Pharr police helped make the arrest and build the case.

Cases like this one are common in the Rio Grande Valley. The region sits along a major drug trafficking corridor between Mexico and the rest of the United States. Federal prosecutors in South Texas have pushed hard in recent years. They want to charge felons found with guns, not just drugs. Prosecutors say guns and drugs together make traffic stops more dangerous. Officers and the public both face more risk.

Salinas is now in federal custody. He is expected to serve most of his 140 month sentence, since federal inmates get limited credit for good behavior. Under federal rules, he must serve at least 85 percent of his time before he can be considered for release. That means Salinas could stay in prison well into the 2030s.

After Salinas finishes his prison term, he will spend 3 years on supervised release. During that time, he must follow strict rules set by a federal probation officer. Any violation, including a new drug or gun offense, could send him back to prison.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Texas has not said whether Salinas plans to appeal. For now, the case stands as one more example. A routine traffic stop in the Rio Grande Valley can turn into a major drug and gun case fast.