DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY GRETCHEN C.F. SHAPPERT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 2, 2007

CONTACT: SUELLEN PIERCE
704.338.3120
FAX 704.227.0264

SEVEN INDICTED FOR HEROIN TRAFFICKING CHARLOTTE, NC – A federal grand jury sitting in Asheville has indicted seven individuals with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than one kilogram of heroin. The indictment resulted from a ten-month investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration. In conjunction with the arrests, which took place in the Charlotte area on Friday, September 28, 2007, approximately six pounds of heroin, $114,000 in cash, and a handgun were seized. DEA was assisted in the investigation by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg and Monroe Police Departments and the Union County Sheriff’s Office.

According to official court documents, the organization used a “dispatch” system through which purchasers called a phone number, a dispatcher directed the purchaser to a nearby location, and a “runner” met the purchaser in another vehicle to conduct the transaction. Today’s announcement is made by Gretchen C.F. Shappert, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, and Rodney G. Benson, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division.

The prosecution is being handled for the government by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven R. Kaufman. Initial appearances for the defendants were conducted on Monday, October 1, and each of the defendants were ordered detained in federal custody. Detention hearings are currently scheduled for Thursday, October 4, 2007.

The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. In the American justice system, a person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty at trial or by guilty plea. However, if convicted as charged, each of the defendants faces a minimum statutory penalty of ten years in prison and a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $4,000,000 fine on the conspiracy count alone. As to all defendants, no sentence will exceed the statutory maximum, and in most cases it will be less than the maximum. It is important to note that any sentence will be influenced by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which the Court consults in order to determine each defendant’s actual sentence. Sentences are based upon a formula that takes into account the severity and characteristics of the offense and each defendant’s criminal history, if any.

SAMMY ESQUEDA FRAUSTI
ABRAHAM HERNADEZ TORRES, also known as “Juan Chavez” and “Beto,”
JUAN MANUEL TEJADA-CIENFUEGOS,
AGUSTIN PARDO MACIAS,
MAUBICIO CORROLES MIZA
IRVING GONZALEZ DIAZ, also known as “Arturo,”
GUADALUPE ELOY ZURITA