Federal prosecutors in California have cracked down on crime in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco, bringing charges against 244 defendants with 114 sentenced so far.
The Federal Initiative for the Tenderloin (FIT) was launched in August 2019 by U.S. Attorney David L. Anderson, who pledged to assign 15 federal prosecutors to handle cases brought against offenders violating federal law in the neighborhood.
The neighborhood, which encompasses about 50 square blocks of downtown San Francisco, has seen a broad array of criminal conduct ranging from mail theft to attempted murder. Cases brought against defendants include charges of bank fraud, escape, firearms offenses, transportation of child pornography, and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor.
One of the recent cases to be resolved was against Manuel Arteaga (aka Angel David Centeno), who was sentenced to 36 months for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine, cocaine base, and heroin, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a), 846.
Arteaga’s case is just one of the 16 recent cases to be resolved in the past six months, with others including Arturo Salamanca, sentenced to 65 months for possession of child pornography, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2252(a); Darwin Villatoro, sentenced to 28 months for possession with intent to distribute heroin and cocaine base, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a); Brazil Harris, sentenced to 40 months for possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a), and felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1); Chantel Williams, sentenced to 81 months for conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of a minor, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1594(C).
U.S. Attorney Anderson pledged to continue the effort for a minimum of one year and there are no current plans to terminate or provide an end date for the initiative.
The Tenderloin neighborhood has been plagued by crime, and the FIT initiative aims to bring law and order to the area. The good people of the Tenderloin should have equal access to schools, stores, transportation, and other services without having to run a gauntlet of crime.
Related Federal Cases
- John Angel Sanchez, Methamphetamine Possession, California 2023 · Kansas
- Cameron Nesbitt, Conspiracy to Distribute Methamphetamine, Pennsylvania 2023 · Texas
- Maurice Tutt, Conspired to Distribute Fentanyl, Cocaine, Methamphetamine, California 2023 · California
- Peter Dimitrov Mirchev, Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine, California 2023 · New York
- Adam Dean Stoneman, Methamphetamine Conspiracy, California 2016 · Nebraska
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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