Woman sentenced in connection with 8 pounds of heroin found in turnpike drug bust

A Connecticut woman arrested in 2018 after police found 8 pounds of heroin hidden in a vehicle she was driving on the Pennsylvania Turnpike pleaded no contest Monday to a conspiracy charge.

Any Crijleipy De Leon Jiminez, 30, was sentenced to 10 to 23 months in the Westmoreland County Prison. She was credited with a little over 10 months served.

Jiminez, who was free on $100,000 bail, participated in the hearing with help of an interpreter. She had been scheduled for trial Monday.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee she was driving east Aug. 6, 2018, in Donegal Township was pulled over by a state trooper who testified two years ago that he believed the SUV had a hidden compartment on its underside. The trooper said he followed the Jeep for about 10 miles until he spotted a traffic infraction.

Inside a hidden compartment, authorities found two vacuum sealed bags of 3 kilograms of heroin worth about $500,000. Jiminez’ passenger, Abel De Jesus Diplan, 40, of Philadelphia, pleaded guilty to drug and conspiracy charges in April and was sentenced to 11 1/2 to 23 months in jail followed by five years of probation.

Jiminez’ attorney Komron Jon Maknoon requested she be sentenced to time served.

“She’s attended college, I know that she has a very close family,” he said. “This is something that has been weighing very heavily on her for years.”

Assistant District Attorney Pete Caravello asked for more jail time.

“This is a case that involved transportation of a pretty significant amount of heroin into Western Pennsylvania,” he said. “Ms. Jiminez … does seem to be the less culpable of the two in this case.”