The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona has announced a significant enforcement operation carried out by Mexico's Attorney General's Office, Fiscalía General de la República (FGR), in Nogales, Sonora. This operation was part of extensive cooperation between the United States and Mexico aimed at dismantling a transnational drug trafficking organization along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The operation led to the arrest of two individuals in Mexico: Heriberto Jacobo Perez, identified as the leader of the organization, and Jesus Bernardo Rodriguez. Mexican authorities seized four vehicles, two buildings, firearms, currency, a large quantity of fentanyl pills, and other controlled substances.
In connection with this case, six U.S.-based coordinators and operators linked to the same drug trafficking organization have been indicted. The individuals named are Rafael Alonso Arriaga, Fernando Garcia-Ibarra, Socorro Rascon, Emmanuel Sotelo-Salazar, Jostan Nathanae Vega-Ochoa, and Rosa Elena Peralta-Marrufo. These indictments were issued by a federal grand jury on July 24, 2024. Additionally, Sotelo-Salazar faces charges related to possessing and distributing a foreign pill press for fabricating fake pills. Garcia-Ibarra and Vega-Ochoa remain fugitives.
Another member of this organization, Eva Angelina De La Torre, was apprehended on November 19, 2024. She was caught attempting to smuggle fentanyl pills into the United States at the Mariposa Port of Entry in Nogales, Arizona.
United States Attorney Gary Restaino stated that "Dismantling transnational crime requires cross-border cooperation." He praised the efforts of career civil servants within the Department of Justice who coordinated with Mexican prosecutors to target this criminal network on both sides of the border.
This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) initiative designed to identify and dismantle high-level criminal organizations threatening the United States through a prosecutor-led approach involving multiple agencies. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) - Nogales spearheaded this investigation within the United States with collaboration from Homeland Security Investigations – Nogales, U.S. Marshals Service, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Support from DEA-Mexico City and FGR’s Agencia de Investigación Criminal played a crucial role in facilitating coordination between U.S. and Mexican law enforcement agencies. Funding from the Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs enabled valuable assistance from the Justice Department’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development Assistance and Training.
The United States Attorney’s Office in Tucson is prosecuting all seven individuals involved in this case.