Sixteen Charged in East Texas Federal Methamphetamine Conspiracy
BEAUMONT, Texas – A federal indictment in the Eastern District of Texas has resulted in the arrest of 16 individuals charged with various violations related to a wide-spread methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy, announced Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Acting Special Agent in Charge William Kimbell and Acting U.S. Attorney Abe McGlothin, Jr.
The indictment, returned by a federal grand jury on April 2, 2025, in the Eastern District of Texas, charges the defendants with federal drug and gun violations. A multi-agency law enforcement action was held on April 16, 2025, resulting in those arrests. Since the investigation began in November 2022, law enforcement has seized over 10 kilograms of methamphetamine and 14 firearms. Those in custody began making initial appearances in federal court on April 16, 2025, in Beaumont.
According to information provided in court, the following individuals are alleged to have been involved in the methamphetamine conspiracy in the Angelina, Nacogdoches, and Polk counties area:
• Albert Lopez, 39, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime;
• Adaryl Douglas, 45, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime;
• Hector Gomez, 40, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Oscar Padilla, 44, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Leanna Jean Busby, 45, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Amanda McBride, 43, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• John Christopher Rios, 53, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Jose Pedro Guzman Jr., 34, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Lorene Michelle Baker, 44, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• David Davis, Jr., 48, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Penny Ann King, 51, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Jodi Calvin Sparkman, 53, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Christopher Dewayne Harvey, 51, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine;
• Gary Mills, 65, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and felon in possession of a firearm;
• Clifton Collin-Dakota Smith, 32, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine; and
• Corey Mullan, 39, charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
If convicted, defendants face from 10 years to life in federal prison.
As part of the operation, Eduardo Barajas-Macias, 32, a close associate of the criminal conspiracy, was also arrested and charged with unlawful reentry by a removed or deported alien.
This investigation is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
The case is being investigated by the Angelina County Sheriff’s Office; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; FBI; U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration; Homeland Security Investigations; Lufkin Police Department; Nacogdoches County Sheriff’s Office; Texas Department of Public Safety; and U.S. Marshals Service. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald S. Carter.
A federal indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
