Prominent Oregon Drug Trafficker and Final Defendant in Large Drug Trafficking Conspiracy Sentenced to Federal Prison

PORTLAND, Ore.-The manager of an Oregon-based drug trafficking cell with ties to a large Mexico-based drug trafficking organization was sentenced to federal prison today following an investigation by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Horacio Luna-Perez, 42, of Hillsboro, Oregon, was sentenced to 97 months in federal prison and five years' supervised release.

According to court documents, in November 2020, DEA special agents began investigating a drug trafficking organization with ties to Mexico operating in several states, including Oregon. In the early stages of the investigation, Luna-Perez was identified as the leader of an Oregon-based drug trafficking cell responsible for maintaining a constant supply and sale of various narcotics, including methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl, in Portland and Eastern Washington. In his role, Luna-Perez directed a network of associates and couriers responsible for obtaining, selling, and redistributing the narcotics.

As part of the same investigation, DEA agents identified a separate drug trafficking cell responsible for redistribution and sale of drugs in Portland and Salem, Oregon led by 34-year-old Portland resident Jesus Miramontes-Castaneda.

On August 11, 2021, a federal grand jury in Portland returned an indictment charging Miramontes-Castaneda and five associates with conspiring with one another to traffic large quantities of heroin and methamphetamine from California for distribution in Portland and Salem. One month later, on September 14, 2021, Luna-Perez and nine associates were charged in a separate indictment with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin, fentanyl, and methamphetamine from California for distribution in and around Portland and in Eastern Washington. Luna-Perez's cell also had ties to drug traffickers in Colorado and California.

Following these indictments, in August and October 2021, coordinated law enforcement operations targeting Luna-Perez and Miramontes-Castaneda's drug trafficking cells led to the arrests of both men and sixteen associates, including several individuals whose involvement in the conspiracies had been previously unknown. Additional charges were brought against those defendants in several parallel cases.

As a result of the various interdictions and takedowns in this investigation, law enforcement seized approximately 200,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl, two pounds of powdered fentanyl, 40 pounds of methamphetamine, 45 pounds of heroin, 13 pounds of cocaine, nine firearms, and more than $1.4 million in cash that had been bundled and stuffed into suitcases.

On August 12, 2022, Miramontes-Castaneda pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin and methamphetamine. Two months later, on December 8, 2022, he was sentenced to 78 months in federal prison and five years' supervised release.

On January 22, 2024, Luna-Perez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl.

In addition to Luna Perez and Miramontes-Castaneda, as part of this investigation, 17 members of their cells have pleaded guilty and been sentenced to federal prison for their involvement in the various drug conspiracies, with sentences ranging from time served to 151 months' imprisonment.

These cases were investigated by the DEA with assistance from Oregon State Police, Portland Police Bureau, Tigard Police Department, the Clackamas County Interagency Task Force (CCITF) including member agencies the Canby Police Department, Oregon City Police Department, and Tualatin Police Department; and Central Oregon Drug Enforcement (CODE). They were prosecuted by William M. McLaren, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

These cases resulted from an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.