United States v. Hector Caballero

── United States v. Hector Caballero ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit Date: April 16, 2026 Category: NEW USCA11 Case: 23-12484 Document: 51-1 Date Filed: 04/16/2026 Page: 1 of 23 NOT FOR PUBLICATION In the United States Court of Appeals For the Eleventh Circuit ____________________ No. 23-12484 Non-Argument Calendar ____________________ UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff-Appellee, versus HECTOR CABALLERO, Defendant-Appellant. ____________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida D.C. Docket No. 8:22-cr-00409-WFJ-SPF-1 ____________________ Before JILL PRYOR, BRANCH, and HULL, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: Hector Caballero appeals his convictions and 210-month sentence for conspiring to possess with intent to distribute and possessing with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of USCA11 Case: 23-12484 Document: 51-1 Date Filed: 04/16/2026 Page: 2 of 23 2 Opinion of the Court 23-12484 cocaine while aboard a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. On appeal, Caballero argues that (1) the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act (“MDLEA”) is unconstitutional; (2) the district court erred in calculating his advisory guidelines range; and (3) his 210-month sentence is substantively unreasonable. After careful review, we affirm Caballero’s convictions and sentence. I. BACKGROUND A federal grand jury charged Caballero and three codefendants with (1) conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine while aboard a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, in violation of 46 U.S.C. §§ 70503(a) and 70506(a), (b); and (2) knowingly possessing with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine while aboard a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, in violation of 46 U.S.C. §§ 70503(a) and 70506(a). Caballero’s three codefendants pled guilty, and Caballero alone proceeded to trial. A. The Jury Trial At trial, the government called four U.S. Coast Guard officers 1 and Caballero’s codefendant Jesus Silvino. 1 The government called (1) Captain Gregory Matyas, (2) Petty Officer Joshua Frazier, (3) Chief Nicolas Acuna, and (4) Special Agent Steven Ray. USCA11 Case: 23-12484 Document: 51-1 Date Filed: 04/16/2026 Page: 3 of 23 23-12484 Opinion of the Court 3 Silvino testified to the following. Silvino was from Venezuela and worked as a fisherman. Silvino was acquainted with Caballero, who worked as a ship captain. In late October or early November 2022, Silvino decided to leave Venezuela and go with Caballero to the United States. First, they traveled from Venezuela to Maicao, Colombia. At a bus terminal in Maicao, the two men were approached by another man called “El Grande” who offered them money to transport drugs. Silvino and Caballero accepted the job. They both travelled about eight hours by car from Maicao to Guajira, Colombia, where they found the vessel that they would pilot. The boat was filled with cocaine under a blue tarp. Silvino saw Caballero speaking to peop