Attorney General James Uthmeier’s Office is charging four people in connection to an interstate cocaine trafficking ring.
Uthmeier announced the arrests of the suspects who are accused of running the drug from El Paso, Texas, to the Tampa area. The alleged cocaine trafficking conspiracy involved 60 kilograms of the drug.
A news release from Uthmeier’s Office said Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office detectives on July 11 working with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) through the State Assistance for Fentanyl Eradication (SAFE) program monitored drug trafficking activity. Freightliner semi-trucks were used to move the drug on a monthly schedule, according to Uthmeier.
“This operation dismantled a dangerous cartel pipeline flooding Florida communities with cocaine,” Uthmeier said. “Thanks to the outstanding work of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, FDLE, and our Statewide Prosecutors, we have removed 60 kilograms of poison from our streets and are holding these traffickers fully accountable.”
Daniel Cruz Pinales, Arturo Carlos, Joaquin Enriquez and Jesus Guadalupe Chan Morales were all charged with trafficking cocaine between 400 grams to 150 kilograms and conspiracy. Uthmeier said the investigation is continuing and more charges could be coming.
Investigators say the suspects were observed retrieving bags of the drug from semitrucks in Wesley Chapel just west of Zephyrhills. The cocaine was then allegedly transported in a vehicle to be handed off in a parking lot in Tampa where investigators say Pinales was waiting for the drop off.
Uthmeier said that’s when Pinales drove off in a separate vehicle and then was pulled over by investigators. Law enforcement officials say they then found three suitcases of cocaine in the vehicle driven by Pinales. That amounts to about 132 pounds of the drug in the vehicle.
Investigators conducted field tests on the substance, which they say were positive for cocaine. All four suspects were arrested on site.
Uthmeier said if the suspects are convicted of the charges they could face 15 years in prison. Senior Assistant Statewide Prosecutor Ryan Shaw is prosecuting the cases in the 6th and 13th Judicial Circuits of Florida, which serve the Tampa Bay area.
