An Inland man said to be a drug kingpin in the Mexican Mafia and his brother were sent to prison Friday, having pleaded guilty in April for their roles in a 2006 killer-for-hire scheme.

Salvador Orozco Hernandez, 43, of Bloomington, identified in federal documents as a Mexican Mafia leader in the San Bernardino area, was sentenced to 10 years. He pleaded guilty April 17 to charges of attempted murder and committing a crime to benefit a criminal street gang.

U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration records filed in court show Hernandez was collecting "taxes" from Inland Hispanic gangs and making a methamphetamine deal at the San Manuel Indian Bingo & Casino.

Salvador Hernandez, left, confers with his attorney, Catherine Fox, before the court hearing. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Another DEA document said investigators fear the Mexican Mafia has infiltrated the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and is extorting money from tribe members, who each receive at least $100,000 a month from casino profits.

Hernandez's brother, Alfred Hernandez, 39, of Fontana, was sentenced to nine years after pleading guilty to attempted murder and admitting criminal gang activity.

Defense attorneys denied that their clients had connections to the Mexican Mafia, also known as "La Eme," a prison gang that controls drug sales in Southern California.

Catherine Fox, representing Salvador Hernandez, and James Taylor, representing his brother, said the plea agreements were fair because their clients could have been sentenced to 25 years to life in prison if they had been found guilty at trial.

They said their clients could be released as early as 2014.

"We had to meet the district attorney halfway," Taylor said. "My client has an 'out date.' My client will be out in six years."

Arrested in Drug Sweep

The brothers were arrested during a drug sweep, led by the DEA, on Dec. 12, 2006, targeting the methamphetamine trade in the Inland area.

Overall, authorities made 19 arrests and seized more than $1 million in methamphetamine and cash and 56 guns, authorities announced at a news conference.

On Friday, Deputy District Attorney Douglas Poston said convicting the Hernandezes affects the command structure of the drug organization.

"Any time you can take out that type of management over the drug trade, it does disrupt, it does provide, for at least a time, a break in that organization," Poston said.

The Hernandezes were charged in connection with a murder-for-hire scheme.

The brothers' sentencing reports, made public Friday, revealed new details about that case, which involved two members of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, Stacy Cheyenne Barajas-Nunez, 25, and her brother, Erik Barajas, 35.

Brass Key Incident

Sometime in March or April of 2006, Erik Barajas encountered several gang members in a Highland bar called the Brass Key, the report states. A confrontation developed, and he paid two gang members and the bar's manager, Leonard Epps, $2,500 each, court records show. The money was meant as protection for Erik Barajas, the probation report states.

Stacy Barajas went to the bar the next day to demand the money back from Epps, who didn't have it, and then threatened to have him killed, the report states.

The report says wiretaps later detected that the brothers were involved in a murder-for-hire scheme targeting Epps.

"Sal Hernandez orchestrated the events in that he helped make every major decision, including the plan to kill and make the phone calls to direct his brother, Alfred Hernandez, to gather the necessary weapons for the killing," the report said.

The report states that Salvador Hernandez may have become involved in the murder plot for financial gain.

"The San Manuel Indians make a significant amount of money," the report states. "This was surely a lure for a convicted criminal who need the money to support himself, his gang and to gain status among the criminal underworld."

The report shows he has an extensive criminal history, beginning with a 1988 arrest in Ontario involving drug possession and sales.

Alfred Hernandez, right, confers with his attorney, James Taylor, before the hearing. Taylor said he will be out of prison in six years.

'Smarter'

Alfred Hernandez has a less extensive criminal history, which led a Probation Department officer to conclude that he may be smarter.

"(His) history does not indicate someone who would take part in the type of offense of which he has been convicted," the report said. "Alfred Hernandez is the smarter of the organized group of co-participants and thereby more sophisticated and less likely to be caught."

Epps has led a life on the run since learning of the threats. In a written statement given to his attorney, Frank Peterson, Epps criticized the plea agreements, saying the defendants got off too easy.

Erik and Stacy Barajas, who also accepted plea agreements in April, will return to court for sentencing Nov. 6.

Reach John F. Berry at 909-806-3058 or jberry@PE.com