Leader of Portland Area Drug Distribution Organization Sentenced to More Than Eight Years in Federal Prison
Responsible for Trafficking Large Quantities of Fentanyl and Meth into Portland
PORTLAND, Ore.—The leader of a drug distribution organization responsible for trafficking large quantities of illegal drugs into the Portland Metropolitan Area for redistribution and sale was sentenced to federal prison today.
Luis Angel Rivera-Huezo, 31, of Hillsboro, Oregon, was sentenced to 100 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised release.
According to court documents, after a monthslong investigation by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), investigators identified Rivera-Huezo as the regional cell leader of an international and interstate drug trafficking organization based in Mexico responsible for trafficking large quantities of illegal drugs, including methamphetamine and fentanyl, into the Portland Metropolitan Area and elsewhere for redistribution and sale.
Over the course of the investigation, DEA agents and other assisting law enforcement officials documented numerous incidents wherein Rivera-Huezo, with assistance of multiple co-conspirators, arranged for drugs to be transported from various locations outside of Oregon, including Mexico, California, and Washington State, into the Portland area for further distribution. Investigators lawfully seized multiple loads of narcotics Rivera-Huezo had arranged for transport to Portland.
As of November 1, 2022, investigators had located and seized more than 125 pounds of methamphetamine, more than six pounds each of fentanyl and heroin, a smaller distribution quantity of cocaine, and nine firearms connected to the Rivera-Huezo network.
On June 7, 2022, a federal grand jury in Portland returned an indictment charging Rivera-Huezo and 10 other individuals with conspiring with one another to possess with intent to distribute and distribute controlled substance and use a communication facility. On June 12, 2023, Rivera-Huezo pleaded guilty to a one-count superseding indictment charging him with the same.
Two of Rivera-Huezo’s co-conspirators have pleaded guilty and been sentenced to federal prison, seven have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing, and a tenth co-conspirator is scheduled to plead guilty later this month.
This case was investigated by the DEA Portland District Office in conjunction with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Tigard Police Department (TPD), and the Westside Interagency Narcotics (WIN) Team. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.
WIN is a Washington County, Oregon-based interagency drug interdiction task force that includes members from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Beaverton and Hillsboro Police Departments, Oregon National Guard Counter Drug Program, DEA, FBI, and HSI.
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