2 Women Given 19-Year Terms for Drug Ring Roles : Narcotics: They receive the maximum sentence for involvement in an organization linking Colombian traffickers to Los Angeles street gangs.

Two women convicted of participating in an international drug ring that linked Colombian drug lords to street gangs in Los Angeles were sentenced Monday to more than 19 years in prison.

Luz Janneth Martinez, 25, and Maria Cecilia Fatima Barona, 30, were handed 235-month terms, the maximum possible, by U.S. District Judge William Rea for their roles in supplying a drug-trafficking network that serviced Los Angeles, San Francisco and Detroit and included warehoused stockpiles of cocaine in Midwest locales such as Springfield, Mo.

In addition to the prison sentences, during which they will be ineligible for parole, Martinez was fined $200,200 and Barona $250,250.

More than $12 million and several thousand pounds of cocaine were seized in the case, along with numerous houses and cars, officials said.

Defense attorneys said the prosecution’s push for maximum sentencing in the case was “excessive” and accused the federal government of conducting an international scapegoating campaign to discourage drug sales and abuse in this country.

Four other defendants connected with the Cali, Colombia-based drug cartel were convicted in May on charges of conspiring to possess a large quantity of cocaine with intent to distribute it, federal prosecutors said.

Mario Ernesto Villabona-Alvarado, 29, of Colombia was identified by prosecutors as the cartel’s “kingpin” and Brian Bennett, 25, of Los Angeles was named as a key dealer catering to Los Angeles gangs. Sentencing for Villabona and Bennett, who both face 30 years to life in prison, is set for Oct. 29.

Defense attorneys argued that Barona and Martinez were “two of the least culpable players in the conspiracy.”

Martinez’s attorney, David Chesnoff, said his client acted as “nothing more than a mule,” referring to a subservient worker who transports drugs upon command.

Assistant U.S. Atty. Dean Dunlavey said the call for maximum sentencing was in response to the “enormous” quantities of cocaine handled by the cartel. “In a case that had close to three tons of cocaine involved in it, there were no minor players,” the prosecutor said. “The buck has to stop someplace.”