Ex-ICE deportation officer in Conroe sentenced for laundering $700,000 in ‘drug money’

HOUSTON — A former deportation officer with the Office of Homeland Security is going to prison for laundering drug money.

A federal judge in Houston sentenced Christopher Washington Toral, 49, from Spring, to 70 months, or nearly six years in prison. He was also ordered to pay a $20,000 fine.

Toral began working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement in 2008 and was assigned to an ICE processing center in Conroe.

During sentencing, prosecutors said he used his badge and gun to protect what he believed to be cartel drug money.

“When a sworn officer uses the badge to shield criminal activity, the damage extends far beyond a single crime; it strikes at the very foundation of public trust,” FBI Houston Special Agent in Charge Douglas Williams said. “Christopher Toral decided to put personal gain over public duty. 

According to the feds, Toral transported a total of $700,000 that he thought was drug money under the pretense of official duties during two months in 2023.

That February, he agreed to take a black bag containing $200,000 in cash from Dallas to Houston as part of an undercover operation. Toral made the same trip later that month, delivering another $200,000. In March, Toral flew from Newark, New Jersey, to Houston with $300,000 in suspected drug money. He was allowed to bypass airport security and TSA lines by flashing his badge. 

“Federal officers are imbued with tremendous power, and with that power comes a great responsibility to uphold the people’s trust,” U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei said. “When those same officers choose to engage in corrupt acts, they not only break the law, they strike at the heart of public confidence in our system of government.”

Toral received cash payments for transporting the drug money. 

He pleaded guilty Feb. 27.

FBI and DHS-OIG conducted the investigation. 

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