Granbury Man Who Conspired to Import Meth through Del Rio Sentenced to 23 Years in Federal Prison

DEL RIO, Texas - A Granbury man was sentenced in a federal court in Del Rio to 280 months in prison for his participation in a conspiracy to attempt to import 7.86 kilograms of methamphetamine into the United States from Mexico and for felon in possession of a firearm.

According to court documents, David Ray Coplin, 35, and other co-defendants were arrested at a hotel in Del Rio on Aug. 1, 2020, after an investigation revealed they were involved in a conspiracy to import methamphetamine from Mexico and distribute it in the United States. Customs and Border Protection officers discovered 16 individual multilayered packages of methamphetamine concealed inside the door panels of codefendant Bibiana Ira Ortiz's vehicle during a port of entry inspection.

On July 31, 2020, Coplin and codefendant Joshua Ruben Olivencia traveled to Del Rio together to meet Ortiz and another codefendant, Jimmie Troy Palmer III. The group had intended for Ortiz to leave the vehicle containing methamphetamine inside in the hotel parking lot, unlocked with the keys. She would then depart Del Rio with Palmer, while Coplin would become the driver of the drug-loaded vehicle.

Homeland Security Investigations agents approached Coplin immediately after he sat in the driver's seat and ordered him to exit the vehicle and get on the ground. Coplin, who is a convicted felon sentenced to 12 years in state prison in 2015, reached into his waist band and began pulling on a concealed handgun, a loaded .40 caliber pistol. Coplin complied with the agents' orders to drop the weapon, and he was taken into custody without further incident. Ortiz was also arrested on-site while Olivencia and Palmer fled. They later returned to the hotel, where they were taken into custody.

Coplin pleaded guilty on March 8, 2021 to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and one count of felon in possession of a firearm. Ortiz pleaded guilty on June 7, 2021 to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of methamphetamine. She was sentenced to 151 months in federal prison. Palmer pleaded guilty on July 21, 2021 to one count of conspiracy to import methamphetamine and was sentenced to 300 months in federal prison. Olivencia was sentenced Oct. 22, 2024, to 264 months in prison.

U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas made the announcement.

HSI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rex Beasley prosecuted the case.

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