Ismael Vargas, Heroin Trafficking, New Mexico 2015

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico – Ismael Vargas, a 29-year-old resident of Belen, New Mexico, pleaded guilty in federal court to heroin trafficking charges. The crime was committed while Vargas was an inmate at the Sandoval County Detention Center.

On August 2, 2015, Vargas arranged for heroin to be delivered to the jail, and he facilitated the payment of money to a corrections officer to get the heroin into the jail. Vargas remains in custody pending a sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Vargas faces up to 41 months in federal prison to be followed by a term of supervised release to be determined by the court.

This case is part of the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative, a comprehensive effort to combat the opioid epidemic in New Mexico. The HOPE Initiative was launched in January 2015 by the UNM Health Sciences Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in response to the national opioid epidemic, which has had a disproportionately devastating impact on New Mexico.

The HOPE Initiative is comprised of five components: (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning. The law enforcement component is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners.

According to the superseding indictment, Vargas, along with former corrections officer Christopher Gonzales, 20, of Rio Rancho, New Mexico, and Fabrienne Rosalinda Morales, 39, of Peralta, New Mexico, conspired to distribute heroin. Gonzales and Morales have also pleaded guilty to their respective charges. Gonzales is scheduled to be sentenced on May 31, 2017, and Morales is scheduled to be sentenced on April 17, 2017.

The New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education Initiative is a collaborative effort to protect communities from the dangers associated with heroin and opioid painkillers and reduce the number of opioid-related deaths in New Mexico.

Defendant: Ismael Vargas

Criminal Charges: Conspiracy to distribute heroin

City and State: Albuquerque, New Mexico

Exact Date: August 2, 2015

Sentence or Outcome: Up to 41 months in federal prison to be followed by a term of supervised release

Category: Drug Trafficking

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