12 Year Prison Sentence For "Cocaine Cowboys" Pilot In Car Smuggling Case

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MIAMI (CBSMiami/AP) — A smuggler who flew loads of drugs for Colombian cartels during Miami's "cocaine cowboys" era in the 1980s was sentenced to 12 years in prison Monday for his participation in an elaborate automobile fraud scheme that netted over $1.8 million.

Seventy-two-year-old Michael 'Mickey' Munday was convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and five counts of mail fraud in January.

Prosecutors say Munday was part of a stolen car ring that obtained the automobiles through false paperwork. They say he transported and hid the stolen vehicles, similar to his smuggling work for Pablo Escobar's Medellin cartel and the Cali cartel.

Munday has bragged about his drug smuggling days in interviews and starred in the 2006 documentary "Cocaine Cowboys."

He served nine years in prison during the 1990s.

(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)