Three Major Amarillo Methamphetamine Traffickers Arrested
Caught trying to sell 20 pounds of meth in DEA sting operation
AMARILLO, Texas - Three Amarillo residents have been charged by a federal criminal complaint stemming from their role in selling large quantities of methamphetamine, announced Clyde E. Shelley, Jr., the Special Agent-in-Charge of the DEA’s Dallas Division and John Parker the US Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.
Specifically, the complaint charges Miguel Angel Bravo-Farias, 41, Hector Terrazas, 25, and Rogelio Xochitl Amparan, 29, with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine. The three defendants made appearances in federal court this week before U.S. Magistrate Judge Clinton E. Averitte, who ordered them to remain in custody pending the detention hearings set for June 14, 2017.
According to the affidavit filed with the federal complaint, on June 8, 2017, an operation was conducted to purchase 20 pounds of methamphetamine. Law enforcement met with Bravo-Farias, an illegal immigrant, and Terrazas at a Denny’s Restaurant located on I-40 in East Amarillo. Bravo-Farias and Terrazas were in possession of a box containing five plastic bags filled with methamphetamine. Bravo-Farias and Terrazas were arrested at the scene.
A search of Terrazas’ residence revealed a white plastic container with crystal like residue, an igloo style container with a crystal like substance, and 34 empty glass bottles with crystal like substance on the spouts in a bedroom. In the refrigerator, there were two igloo style containers with liquid substance believed to be liquid methamphetamine. In the same room was a closet that was converted into a work station with drying equipment. The closet contained fans and opened igloo style containers. On the floor there were used plastic gloves and utensils that had crystal like substance on them. The residence was used as a conversion lab from liquid to crystal methamphetamine.
The investigation revealed Xochitl Amparan as the head of the methamphetamine distribution operation.
A federal complaint is a written statement of the essential facts of the offense charged, and must be made under oath before a magistrate judge. A defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. The U.S. Attorney’s office has 30 days to present the matter to a grand jury for indictment. The penalty for the offense charged in the criminal complaints is a maximum statutory penalty of life in federal prison and a $1 million fine.
The Amarillo Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the case with assistance from the Randall County Sheriff’s Office, the Potter County Sheriff’s Office, the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Potter County District Attorney’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Anna Bell is prosecuting.
