September 11, 2026 – SAN DIEGO, CA – Benjamin Madrigal-Birrueta, a Mexican national in the country illegally who was living in Yakima, Washington, was sentenced in federal court on Thursday to 40 years in prison for his role in the murders of a man, his six-month pregnant wife and their unborn child during a drug-related dispute.
According to his plea agreement, Madrigal and co-conspirators fatally shot 44-year-old Cesar Murillo multiple times in the back of the head and torso on August 28, 2022, during an argument. The shooting took place at a remote ranch outside of Yakima, Washington. Madrigal’s co-conspirators then buried the victim’s body in a six-foot-deep grave under a gravel road near the ranch at Madrigal’s direction.
On September 2, 2022, Madrigal coaxed Murillo’s wife, Maira Sofia Hernandez, 33, to come to the ranch by 
claiming her husband was waiting for her there and wanted to see her. Hernandez did not know that only a few days earlier, Madrigal and his co-conspirators had shot, killed and buried her husband at the same ranch. Madrigal picked Hernandez up in Yakima and drove her 45 minutes into the mountains to the ranch.
When the visibly pregnant Hernandez arrived at the ranch, the defendant parked and they got out of his car. Soon thereafter, Madrigal’s co-conspirators shot her multiple times in the head and body. U.S. District Court Judge Dana M. Sabraw described Hernandez’s drive to the ranch as “a one-way ticket for her.” Madrigal’s co-conspirators then buried Hernandez in a separate deep grave under a gravel road near the ranch, again at Madrigal’s direction. The child died in utero when Hernandez was shot, killed and buried.
Madrigal also admitted in his plea agreement that the murders were committed while he was engaged in a drug trafficking conspiracy. Court testimony revealed that Murillo and Hernandez had worked with Madrigal in the drug trafficking organization but had just informed Madrigal that they planned to cooperate with law enforcement.
During the sentencing, the judge repeatedly described the murders as “horrific.” “So horrific that they demand a significant sentence.” Although the Court agreed that Madrigal had a “horrible childhood” and needed money to assist his sisters with migrating from Mexico to the United States, “the answer is not to do this.” Madrigal’s motivation to murder these victims was “wrong on every possible level.”
Madrigal had months to think about his actions, the Court stated, and yet he remained in the drug trafficking business. The Court added that Madrigal and his co-conspirators “executed” Murillo, Hernandez and the fetus, so he could “stay in control” and continue to run his drug business. And Madrigal clearly profited from his involvement in drug dealing, driving fancy cars, using drugs, and overseeing a ranch in Yakima with a virtual arsenal of weapons. The Court noted that the murders were particularly troubling because Madrigal was involved in killing cooperating witnesses. The Court concluded by noting, “It is very clear, the enormity of the stress and damage you have caused to the victims’ families.”
“While here illegally, Benjamin Madrigal-Birrueta chose a life of violence and greed,” said U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon, “The victims’ families deserved this strong measure of justice.”
“Today’s 40-year sentence holds Benjamin Madrigal-Birrueta accountable for the brutal murders of Cesar Murillo, Maira Hernandez, and their unborn child,” said Kevin Murphy, acting Special Agent in Charge of HSI San Diego. “This case reflects the extraordinary persistence of HSI special agents and our law enforcement partners to combat violent drug cartels, provide justice for victims and their families, and protect our communities.”
According to court filings, the investigation originated with the seizure of drugs from vehicles using San Diego area ports of entry between August and October of 2021. The organization built sophisticated compartments in high-end stolen vehicles to smuggle drugs through the ports of entry into the United States. Madrigal-Birrueta was a leader in the criminal enterprise. He coordinated the movements of the drug mules importing the drugs and worked to get the drugs up to Yakima for dispersal to other parts of the United States. Madrigal-Birrueta also coordinated the movement of hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash back to the drug trafficking organization in Mexico.
By August of 2022, the investigation led agents from San Diego up to Yakima. HSI Agents interviewed Murillo and Hernandez in August 2022. Within days of those interviews, Murillo and Hernandez were murdered and their bodies were buried in deep graves in the high desert. Court filings describe how these charges follow an exhaustive, year-long investigation that employed geophysicists, ground penetrating radar, aircraft, laser imaging, chemical testing of the soil, numerous cadaver dogs, and other law enforcement techniques to search for the victims’ remains. HSI Special Agents successfully recovered the remains on September 13, 2023, aided by a Washington State Police Crime Scene Investigations team.
During the investigation agents seized methamphetamine, cocaine, fentanyl, and multiple firearms — including a machine gun — from Madrigal’s drug trafficking organization.
This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF San Diego comprises agents and officers from FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, DEA, ATF, U.S. Marshals, Department of Defense, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, IRS Criminal Investigation, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Interpol, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California.
DEFENDANT Case Number 23cr1684-DMS
Benjamin Madrigal-Birrueta Age: 25 Yakima, WA
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Count 4: Murder of Cesar Armando Murillo in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Conspiracy – Title 21, United States Code, Section 848(e)
Mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years and up to life, or death
Count 5: Murder of Maira Sophia Hernandez in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Conspiracy – Title 21, United States Code, Section 848(e)
Mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years and up to life, or death
Count 9: Causing the Death of a Child in Utero – Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1841 and 1111
Mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years and up to life, or death
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Homeland Security Investigations
Drug Enforcement Administration
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
Washington State Police
California Highway Patrol
Yakima Police Department
Tulare County Sheriff’s Office
Visalia Police Department
Fresno Sheriff’s Office
Fresno Police Department
Source & photo: DOJ Release