Four suspected drug traffickers with apparent ties to a Mexico-based transnational criminal organization are facing federal charges today after they were caught transporting nearly 370 gallons of liquid heroin.

Marco Antonio Magallon, 44, Luis Deleon Woodward, 26, and Jorge Luis Amador, 25, all of Yakima, Washington, and Santos Alisael Aguilar Maya, 32, whose place of residence is unknown, have been charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and possess with intent to distribute heroin.

According to court documents, on January 24, 2024, as part of an ongoing, multi-agency drug trafficking investigation, law enforcement obtained information that several individuals working for a transnational criminal organization were transporting a large load of illegal narcotics into the District of Oregon. Late in the evening of January 24 and in the early morning hours of January 25, 2024, investigators observed a rented moving truck driven by Amador and an accompanying red pickup truck traveling west on Interstate 84 near Bonneville, Oregon. Investigators observed the vehicles travel together to a motel in Tigard, Oregon, making one brief stop in a commercial parking lot in Beaverton, Oregon.

Later on January 25, investigators executed federal search warrants on the defendants’ motel room and two vehicles. They located and seized eight 55-gallon barrels containing approximately 370 gallons of a liquid narcotic inside the moving truck and two loaded handguns inside the motel room. All four defendants were arrested without incident. Investigators transported the seized narcotic, which weighed approximately 1.4 metric tons, to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) narcotics room. Lab tests later confirmed the barrels contained liquid heroin.

This case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, WCSO, and the Westside Interagency Narcotics Team. It is being prosecuted by Scott M. Kerin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

“Oregon has become a magnet for drug cartels to distribute poison that’s killing Oregonians. This is another example of how failed polices like Measure 110 and the open southern border put our state in danger. We must change course to save more lives,” said House Republican Leader Jeff Helfrich (R-Hood River), a retired Portland police officer.

House Republicans have introduced HB 4036 to structurally reform the broken Measure 110 so that Oregon can begin to address the out-of-control crises of drugs, homelessness, and crime that plague the state.

The Republican bill classifies possession of deadly drugs like fentanyl, heroin, and meth as a Class A Misdemeanor, mandates treatment to avoid jail time, bans public use, and requires evaluation and treatment as part of probation for certain drug and property crimes. It requires prison sentences for drug dealers and manufacturers with multiple convictions, and increases the penalties for drug dealers who sell drugs that result in the death of a person.


--Staff Reports

Post Date: 2024-02-02 17:33:13

Last Update: 2024-02-02 17:49:54