Armando Daniel Marquez, Heroin Trafficking, New Mexico 2016

Las Cruces, NM – In a shocking turn of events, Armando Daniel Marquez, 54, a notorious member of a Sunland Park heroin trafficking ring, pleaded guilty today in federal court in Las Cruces, New Mexico, to heroin trafficking charges.

The investigation, led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), targeted a heroin trafficking organization allegedly led by Raymundo Muñoz, 68, of Sunland Park, New Mexico, that obtained its heroin from Juan Francisco Rivera, 60, of El Paso, Texas.

According to the indictment, Rivera routinely supplied Muñoz with heroin, in quantities ranging from two to nine ounces, which was smuggled by couriers into the United States across the international border in El Paso. The indictment alleges that Muñoz took the heroin to his Sunland Park residence where he distributed the drugs to others.

Marquez pleaded guilty to conspiracy, distribution of heroin, and use of a communication facility to further the commission of a drug trafficking crime. In entering the guilty plea, Marquez admitted to conspiring with Muñoz to distribute heroin to others between May and July 2016.

As part of his plea agreement, Marquez admitted to selling eight grams of heroin on May 26, 2016, and facilitating the sale and delivery of approximately 40 to 60 grams of heroin from May 26, 2016, through June 26, 2016.

Marquez is the sixth defendant to plead guilty in the case, joining four other defendants who have already entered guilty pleas. The remaining co-defendants have entered pleas of not guilty to the charges in the indictment.

The investigation was designated as part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) program, a nationwide program that combines the resources and unique expertise of federal agencies, along with their local counterparts, in a coordinated effort to disrupt and dismantle major drug trafficking organizations.

The Las Cruces office of the DEA and Sunland Police Department investigated these cases with assistance from the El Paso office of the FBI, the U.S. Border Patrol, and the Gang Unit of the El Paso Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dustin C. Segovia and Renee L. Camacho of the U.S. Attorney’s Office are prosecuting the case.

Related Federal Cases