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PORTLAND, Ore.—Three Honduran nationals are facing federal drug trafficking charges today after their supply of illicit fentanyl was linked to a fatal overdose in Portland.
Manuel Velasquez-Estrejo, 38, Jorge Rivera-Nunez, 27, and Dennis Palma-Hurbina, 23, have been charged by federal criminal complaint with conspiring to possess and possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl.
According to court documents, on the morning of June 7, 2023, a sheriff deputy from the Washington Interagency Narcotics Team (WIN) responded to the scene of a fatal overdose on West Burnside Street in Portland where a deceased victim had been found by her adult son. The victim’s son told investigators that he and his mother had recently purchased around 100 fentanyl pills for $200 from a person later determined to be Velasquez-Estrejo. Later the same day, law enforcement arrested Velasquez-Estrejo in possession of approximately 1,000 multicolored fentanyl pills and two ounces of powdered fentanyl. They also located a motel room key on Velasquez-Estrejo’s person.
Further investigation revealed that Velasquez-Estrejo was staying at a motel on Northeast 82nd Avenue in Portland with two associates identified as Rivera-Nunez and Palma-Hurbina. Investigators surveilled the motel property and arrested Rivera-Nunez and Palma-Hurbina as they were leaving their room. A search of the room returned more than six pounds of powdered fentanyl, 11,295 multicolored counterfeit Oxycodone pills containing fentanyl, and half a pound of methamphetamine.
All three defendants made their first appearances in federal court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Youlee Yim You. They were detained pending further court proceedings.
This case was jointly investigated by WIN, the Oregon-Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Interdiction Task Force (HIT), Portland Police Bureau, and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott M. Kerin and Certified Law Student Kara Blatt for the District of Oregon
WIN includes representatives from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Beaverton and Hillsboro Police Departments, Oregon National Guard Counter Drug Program, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and HSI.
A criminal complaint is only an accusation of a crime, and defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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