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DEA

Grand jury indicts 8 people in fentanyl distribution ring

The 18^th Judicial District Attorney’s Office and DEA announced the indictment of 8 individuals involved in a large-scale fentanyl distribution operation during a press conference July 6.

A tip about possible fentanyl trafficking led investigators to open a case in December 2021. Over the course of several months, law enforcement spent countless hours conducting multiple drug buys and wiretap investigations.

As a result of this case, more than 200,000 fentanyl pills were seized along with 9.4 lbs. of heroin, a kilogram of cocaine, 4 guns and approximately $60,000 worth of stolen merchandise.

“In my 31 years in law enforcement, I have never seen anything like the current drug crisis and how it is impacting our communities,” DEA Special Agent in Charge Bryan Besser said. “The availability and accessibility of fake pills right now is staggering. They are available everywhere and anywhere. The illicit drug market is saturated.”

The fentanyl pills are likely coming in from Mexico with the Denver-Metro area being used as a distribution hub. Searches of two separate vehicles were conducted. In one vehicle, officers found approximately 170,000 pills. Authorities also conducted a traffic stop on I-70 for a second vehicle that was under surveillance for drug trafficking. During that stop, officers seized approximately 30,000 pills.

“My Organized Crime Unit (OCU) is committed to investigating and aggressively prosecuting the people who import and peddle this poison. Too often we hear about someone dying from taking just one of these pills.” District Attorney John Kellner said. “I believe this operation saved lives. It wouldn’t have been possible without the help from our partner agencies.”

The DEA, HSI, Rocky Mountain HIDTA, Denver Police, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and the Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office were all involved this operation.

The following individuals are facing multiple charges related to Grand Jury Case No. 21CR1:

Carla Estefani Ramos-Vasquez

Mercy Rosario Ramos-Mejia

Francisco Geovanni Ramirez-Gomez

Misael Saavedra-Figueroa

Estefany Carolina Chavez-Minero

Josue Obed Elvir Arteaga

Gersen Ramos

Oscar Diaz

A copy of the indictment is available via the courts. Criminal charges are merely a formal accusation that an individual has committed a crime. A defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

19 people indicted in drug-distribution ring

At a news conference Dec. 1, the District Attorney’s Office for the 18th Judicial District and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration announced the grand jury indictments of 19 people in connection with a drug-distribution ring. Two other related defendants were identified and arrested after the indictments.

The 20-count indictment from the 18th Judicial District Grand Jury outlines how the defendants distributed large quantities of controlled substances — including cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl – throughout Arapahoe, Douglas, Denver and Jefferson counties.

The DEA began its investigation in April 2021. The grand jury found that defendant Saul Ramon Rivera-Beltran, 30, of Thornton, coordinated the drug shipments and deals from Mexico. The fentanyl is believed to have been manufactured in Mexico, smuggled into the United Sates and eventually brought to Colorado. Rivera-Beltran is being held on $1 million bond.

“These indictments are an example of how my Organized Crime Unit is able to prosecute those who traffic illegal drugs in our communities and neighborhoods,” said District Attorney John Kellner. “These are people who peddle deadly substances. And where we find the illegal drug trade, we usually find illegal weapons. We will continue to work with local, state and federal partners to prosecute these criminal organizations.”

“This investigation is not about the amount of drugs seized or number of people arrested,” said DEA Denver Acting Special Agent in Charge David Olesky. “This investigation demonstrates and corroborates the alarming trend in counterfeit prescription pills laced with fentanyl flooding our streets, as well as the continuing nexus between drug trafficking and violent crime impacting our communities.”

These are the defendants, who will prosecuted in Douglas County District Court:

Saul Ramon Rivera-Beltran, 2021CR1057
Samuel Padilla-Romo, 2021CR1059
Jesus Tarango-Rodriquez, 2021CR1061
Misael Acosta-garcia, 2021CR1063
Martin Ivan Trevizo, 2021CR1065
Austin Peterson, 2021CR1067
Christian Beltran-Beltran, 2021CR1069
Gustavo Labrador Valderrama, 2021CR1071
Luis Jacob Zytacua, 2021CR1073
Amanda Fair Wynn Bidgood, 2021CR1075
Juan Francis Sarabia-Mancinas, 2021CR1076
Anita Kay Bateman, 2021CR1077
Miguel Diarte, 2021CR1079
Brayan Osiel Gonzales-Mancinas, 2021CR1080
Jorge Escamilla, 2021CR1081
Antonio Lorenzo Escamilla, 2021CR1083
Ernestina Angela Montoya, 2021CR1085
Cesar A Ortiz, 2021CR1087
Alberto Sanchez Rodrigquez, 2021CR1089
Adrian Santana, 2021CR1091
Nancy Vargas, 2021CR1093

Charges range from racketeering and conspiracy under the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act to drug distribution and money laundering. The top counts are Class 2 felonies.

Criminal charges are merely a formal accusation that an individual has committed a crime. A defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

21 indicted in large money-laundering conspiracy

At a news conference today, the District Attorney’s Office for the 18th Judicial District, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Homeland Security Investigations announced the grand jury indictments of 21 people in connection with a year-long investigation into a large money-laundering conspiracy.

The 45-count indictment from the 18th Judicial District Grand Jury outlines how the defendants illegally grew marijuana and laundered their drug proceeds through a sophisticated system of social media apps, QR codes and illegal money brokers in China. The defendants grew and distributed the marijuana throughout the Denver metro area, with grows and stash houses across Colorado.

“This elaborate scheme and subsequent indictment is an example of why I moved to support an Organized Crime Unit when I took office,” said District Attorney John Kellner. “These conspirators undermine law and order as well as community safety. My unit will continue to work with local, state and federal partners to prosecute these criminal networks.”

“I would like to applaud the hard work and professionalism of all our partners in the Front Range Task Force,” said Deanne Reuter, Special Agent in Charge, DEA Denver Field Division. “This was a complex criminal operation that could only have been brought down by the cooperation of all agencies involved.”

“The defendants in this case are alleged to have gone to great lengths to carry out their sophisticated money laundering conspiracy to fund illegal activity, and they will now face justice for their crimes,” said Steven Cagen, special agent in charge, HSI Denver. “HSI is proud to work with the 18th Judicial District Attorney and the DEA on investigations like these to disrupt the flow of illicit proceeds used in illegal narcotics activity and we will continue to pursue transnational criminal organizations that seek to harm the residents of Colorado.”

In addition to the DA’s office, DEA, HSI and members of the Front Range Task Force, special assistance was provided by the Colorado Department of Revenue, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Colorado National Guard, Firestone Police Department, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, the Haskell County (Okla.) Sheriff’s Office, Denver Police Department, Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office and the Mountain View Police Department. Numerous other law enforcement agencies provided assistance to the task force at various times over the course of the investigation.

These are the defendants, who will prosecuted in Arapahoe County District Court:
Lin Zhang, 2021CR1188
Yan Chen, 2021CR1189
Cindy Zheng, 2021CR1190
Weilun Zhang, 2021CR1191
Xin He, 2021CR1192
A Wei Chen, 2021CR1193
Kui Chen, 2021CR1194
Guo Cai Chen, 2021CR1195
Chun Jin Lin, 20221CR1196
He Xian Chen, 2021CR1197
Guo Li Liu, 2021CR1198
Yan Zhang Liu, 2021CR1199
Gaoyu Chen, 2021CR1200
Lan Fang Wu, 2021CR1201
Pin Chen, 2021CR1202
Guo Fu Chen, 2021CR1203
Wei Lian Fu, 2021CR1204
Yunrong Liu, 2021CR1205
Xiaohui Tang, 2021CR1206
Lin Chen, 2021CR1207
Zhu Zhu Chen, 2021CR1208

Charges range from racketeering and conspiracy under the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act to drug cultivation and distribution to money laundering. The top counts are Class 2 felonies.

Criminal charges are merely a formal accusation that an individual has committed a crime. A defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

Jury convicts businessman of 6 felonies in marijuana trafficking case

A former Aspen businessman has been convicted of six felonies in connection with a massive marijuana trafficking organization that conned investors and shipped illegal drugs out of Colorado.

An Arapahoe County District Court jury convicted Scott Pack, 41, of two counts under the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act (COCCA) – pattern of racketeering and conspiracy; a first-class drug felony; conspiracy to cultivate marijuana; and two counts of securities fraud.

“Coloradans did not pass Amendment 64 to become the Wild West of Weed. Despite the perception that marijuana is completely legal, it is not,” said District Attorney George Brauchler. “Colorado created a regulatory framework that we defend by aggressively prosecuting those, including the rich, who choose greed over our laws.”

Pack, who now lives in California, was indicted in June 2017 along with 19 others after an investigation that started in August 2016. At that time law enforcement found an illegal marijuana operation at a site in Elizabeth. Investigators discovered 845 marijuana plants weighing 2,535 pounds worth more than $5 million.

That was the beginning of an investigation that uncovered a major drug trafficking organization that was involved in illegally cultivating, processing and distributing marijuana and marijuana products to at least five states. The DTO produced well over 300 pounds of marijuana each month at sites in Denver, Elizabeth and Colorado Springs. The distribution was arranged and executed throughout Arapahoe, Douglas and Elbert counties, and other locations along the Front Range.

The DTO used the guise of a licensed and legal business – Harmony & Green and various iterations — to cultivate and distribute marijuana illegally. Harmony & Green never produced any marijuana that was legally sold. No legal marijuana sales were reported or marijuana taxes paid.

Pack, at the top of the drug enterprise, played a pivotal role, taking the proceeds of black market marijuana as well as soliciting investors to back the enterprise through fraudulent statements and empty promises.

Pack and various associates scammed investors out of millions of dollars while Harmony & Green never once sold legal marijuana in Colorado but instead provided a front for a successful illegal marijuana trafficking operation.

“This defendant thought he could avoid prosecution by having subordinates do all the dirty work. He thought he left no trail. He told them, ‘If anything happens to you, I have the money to hire the attorneys. So none of this can touch me’.” said Senior Deputy District Attorney Darcy Kofol, who tried the case with Senior Deputy District Attorney Laura Wilson. “He was wrong. I am grateful to the jurors for seeing the truth and holding him accountable.”

The drug felony carries a mandatory prison term of 8-32 years in prison. Other counts have presumptive ranges but prison time is not mandatory and sentences are at the discretion of the judge. Sentencing is set for April 6 at 8:30 a.m.