Arizona man sentenced to 20 years following multi-agency drug investigation
RENO, Nev. — A Washoe County man was sentenced May 27 to 20 years in prison related to a drug trafficking conviction.
The multi-agency investigation was led by the Regional Narcotics Unit, which comprises law enforcement officers and special agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Washoe County Sheriff’s Office, the Reno and Sparks Police departments, and the University of Nevada Reno, Police Services.
Jesus Camacho-Luque, 31, of Arizona, was sentenced by the Washoe County District Court after pleading guilty in April. Based on the sentenced received, Camacho-Luque must serve a minimum of seven years in prison before he is eligible for parole.
“The success of this investigation highlights the importance and necessity of law enforcement partnerships across the spectrum,” said Francisco Burrola, special agent in charge for HSI Las Vegas. “Of particular importance, the narcotics seized ensured that the narcotics would not enter the drug distribution supply chain and inevitably harm the public. We are proud to be part of the team making our communities safer.”
The case against Camacho-Luque began in March 2020, when law enforcement received information pertaining to a possible fentanyl supplier working on behalf of a drug trafficking organization out of Sinaloa, Mexico. On Aug. 15, 2020, HSI special agents and law enforcement officers successfully apprehended Camacho-Luque in a narcotics operation. A search of Camacho-Luque’s vehicle uncovered 5,000 pills that were later confirmed as testing positive for Fentanyl and Oxycodone, according to the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Science Division.
During sentencing, Deputy District Attorney Michael Vieta-Kabell argued that the defendant’s actions posed a serious risk to the safety of the community, and that the 20-year sentence with parole eligibility starting after seven years requested by the District Attorney’s Office, was fair based on the severity of the offense.
HSI is a directorate of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the principal investigative arm of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), responsible for investigating transnational crime and threats, specifically those criminal organizations that exploit the global infrastructure through which international trade, travel and finance move. HSI’s workforce of over 10,400 employees consists of more than 7,100 special agents assigned to 220 cities throughout the United States, and 80 overseas locations in 53 countries. HSI’s international presence represents DHS’s largest investigative law enforcement presence abroad and one of the largest international footprints in U.S. law enforcement.
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