Pilot who smuggled cocaine into Houston sentenced to prison

HOUSTON – A commercial airline pilot who smuggled 62 baggies of cocaine from South America to Houston has been sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison.

Stanley Rafael Hill, now 50, called 911 after some of the bags ruptured in his stomach shortly after he landed at George Bush Intercontinental Airport  in late May 2014.

In addition to the prison time, Federal Judge Sim Lake ordered Hill to pay a $5,100 fine. He will be subject to three years of supervised probation after he is released.

Hill flew commuter jets for a regional carrier that supplied service to several different major airlines. He was based for a time in Ontario, California, Local 2 Investigates previously reported.

Hill called 911 from a Houston motel room and in a bizarre conversation with the 911 operator admitted to ingesting the cocaine for money.

CLICK HERE TO HEAR THE RAW 911 CALL

Hill was transported to a northeast Houston hospital shortly after the 911 call. He recovered a few days later and was put into federal custody.

After a hearing in June, the McKinney-based 737 pilot attacked a Local 2 crew.

Shortly after the incident, but not necessarily because of it, the judge cancelled Hill's bond. He has remained in custody since.

On an FAA website, it appeared, Thursday, that Hill still retained licensure and certification to fly commercially

An FAA spokesperson said he was checking on the matter, but said that the process to revoke a pilot's license involved specific procedures.


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