Drug ring busted

CHARLOTTE – Six members of an alleged drug trafficking group that reportedly possessed 4,017 pounds of marijuana are in federal custody. Another suspect remains at large and one person was released on bond.
The arrests stem from an ongoing investigation led by a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) task force. Detectives with the McDowell County Sheriff's Office are part of that organization.
The suspects, who were arrested on a federal criminal complaint last week, came before a federal magistrate judge in Charlotte Thursday morning for detention hearings.
According to official court documents, five individuals were arrested in Charlotte on Tuesday, June 16 and two individuals were arrested at the scene of a traffic stop in Winnsboro, S.C. An eighth person is still on the loose.
Following are the suspects and their statuses:
-- Luis Alberto Zapata-Hernandez, 33, of Charlotte; fugitive; anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Zapata-Hernandez is encouraged to call the DEA at (704) 770-2050, the McDowell County Sheriff's Office at 652-4000 or McDowell County Crimestoppers at 65-CRIME.
-- Sergio Antonio Lerma-Guiterrez, 30, of Charlotte; in federal custody awaiting a detention hearing set for June 29; in possession of lawful Visa
-- Oswaldo Andres Figueroa-Martinez, 24, of Charlotte; in federal custody; illegal alien
-- Angel Gomez-Ojeda, 29, of Charlotte; in federal custody; illegal alien
-- Cesar Villasenor-Olivares, 28, of Charlotte; in federal custody; permanent resident status
-- Maclovio Dominguez-Agraz, 20, address unknown; in federal custody; illegal alien
-- Kerri Lee Dabbs, 27, of Asheville; released June 22 on a $25,000 unsecured bond; U.S. citizen
-- Cesar Palmeros-Marin, also known as Caesar A. Vasquez, 20, of Asheville; in federal custody; illegal alien
Each member of the alleged drug conspiracy group is currently charged in a federal criminal complaint with conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute 1,000 kilograms or more of marijuana.
According to the complaint affidavit, DEA agents began an investigation into marijuana and cocaine trafficking by members of a Mexican drug trafficking organization in January 2008. On June 16, 2009, during the course of the investigation, DEA agents established surveillance of a warehouse located at 330 E. Hebron St. in Charlotte. Subsequent surveillance and investigation led to the seizures of 1,620 pounds of marijuana from Unit F of the warehouse, 326 pounds of marijuana from a vehicle that was stopped in South Carolina and 2,071 pounds of marijuana from a house with a Charlotte address. Also seized from the house was several hundred thousand dollars in U.S. currency, consisting of stacks of bundled bills.
Under the current charge, each defendant faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.
"Mexican drug trafficking organizations dominate the trafficking of marijuana, as well as cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin, throughout the United States and facilitate the flow of drug proceeds back into Mexico," said Rodney G. Benson, special agent in charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division. "North Carolina is not exempt from these drug trafficking organizations and, in fact, is becoming a staging area for large shipments of all drugs and a collection point for currency. The DEA will continue to aggressively investigate these organizations and work closely with our federal, state and local counterparts to insure maximum impact of our enforcement efforts."
Benson encourages parents, along with their children, to educate themselves about the dangers of legal and illegal drugs by visiting DEA's interactive Web sites at www.justhinktwice.com, www.GetSmartAboutDrugs.com and www.dea.gov.