Pueblo heroin bust yields 60 pounds and 40,000 doses of drug

After a lengthy investigation in southern Colorado, Pueblo police officers and state and federal authorities seized heroin in amounts that would have yielded 40,000 user doses to be sold on Pueblo's streets.

Authorities raided two Pueblo homes and a business called Get Your Fix Automotive, where they said they found $8 million worth of heroin in a massive and historic seizure. The heroin weighed 28 kilograms (61.7 pounds).

They said they also seized 2.5 pounds of methamphetamine; 50 grams of cocaine; 35 firearms, including stolen weapons and a machine gun; and $540,000 in cash, according to a Thursday announcement by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The FBI Southern Colorado Safe Streets Task Force began investigating Pueblo gang activity in December 2016, which eventually led them to the seizure and the federal indictments of five Pueblo men.

The U.S. Attorney's Office obtained grand jury indictments charging Daniel Vasquez, Roger Bujanda, Jesus Mercado Valdez and Gage Rael with possession with intent to distribute heroin and felon in possession of a firearm. Leonard Aragon was charged with two counts of possession with intent to distribute heroin.

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Authorities said at least one of the houses was littered with assault weapons and loaded with cash and heroin and believe the men would have sold it in Pueblo rather than distributing to other cities. 

The heroin was being manufactured elsewhere, said Marc McCulloch, a supervisory special agent with the FBI Denver Division, in a Thursday press conference, according to the Pueblo Chieftain. McCulloch would not specify where the heroin was being manufactured. 

The sentences the men face are dependent on the weight of the drugs seized or trafficked. Possession with intent to distribute a kilogram or more of heroin carries a penalty range of 10 years to life in federal prison, plus fines up to $250,000. Being a felon in possession of a firearm carries a penalty up to 10 years in federal prison, plus fines up to $250,000.

The Pueblo Police Department handled the investigation as part of the Southern Colorado Safe Streets Task Force, which includes other local law enforcement agencies, the state Department of Corrections Office of Inspector General, the state Department of Corrections Office of Parole, the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security, the IRS Criminal Investigation Division, and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.

Authorities lauded the cooperative effort that secured the seizure and indictments. Assistant U.S. Attorney Beth Gibson is prosecuting the men.

"This series of cases reflects forensic partnership policing at its best," acting U.S. Attorney Bob Troyer said in a statement. "Dangerous individuals and their poison and weaponry are now gone. With minimal disruption, Pueblo is a safer place."

Between 2013 and 2015, Pueblo County more than tripled the state's age-adjusted rate of heroin-related overdose deaths, according to numbers compiled by the Heroin Response Work Group. During those years, there were 8.7 deaths per 100,000 residents in Pueblo County. 

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Across the state, heroin-related deaths and hospitalizations have spiked in recent years. Meanwhile, the price and purity of heroin have dropped, according to Drug Enforcement Agency monitoring in Denver.

In 2011, authorities reported seizing 20 pounds of heroin statewide, compared with 427 pounds seized in 2015, according to the work group.

Reporter Cassa Niedringhaus covers breaking news for the Coloradoan. Follow her on Twitter: @CassaMN.