United States Drug Enforcement Administration

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Rachel Rangel, 29, of Anchorage, Alaska, was sentenced to eight years imprisonment on November 3, 2016, for her role in a narcotics trafficking organization.  U.S. District Judge Sharon L. Gleason also ordered Rangel to serve five years of supervised release following her release from custody.  On June 29, 2016, Rangel pleaded guilty to conspiring with others in Alaska and elsewhere to trafficking over one kilogram of heroin into Alaska.

According to information presented to the court, Rangel developed a source of supply for heroin in southern California. Rangel then enlisted a number of women from Alaska and Florida to retrieve heroin from her source of supply and carry it to Anchorage via commercial airliner.  

Once Rangel received the heroin from her couriers, she and others in her organization would then resell the heroin in Anchorage for a profit. Rangel managed this operation for just over a year and was responsible for over one kilogram of heroin being smuggled into Alaska and sold.

At the sentencing, the court highlighted the harm Rangel caused to the end users of the
heroin she was responsible for distributing as well as to the women who had carried the heroin on her
behalf. The court also noted that Rangel’s conduct contributed to the current nationwide crisis of heroin addiction.

The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Alaska State Troopers, and the Anchorage Airport Police.