Moline Drug Kingpin Luis Hernandez-Barajas Sentenced to Over 15 Years

DAVENPORT, Iowa – The grimy streets of Moline were hit with a hard-hitting blow as Luis Alberto Hernandez-Barajas, a 42-year-old citizen of Mexico, was handed down a sentence that echoed through the justice system. On Thursday, November 18, 2021, Hernandez-Barajas received 188 months in federal prison for Conspiracy to Distribute 50 Grams or More of Methamphetamine.

\\

The court ordered an additional five years of supervised release following his release from prison and a $100 fine to the Crime Victims’ Fund. The sentence was handed down by Judge John A. Jarman in the Southern District of Iowa.

\\

According to federal prosecutors, Hernandez-Barajas, while serving time for a prior drug trafficking conviction, supplied Christopher Hicks with six pounds of methamphetamine and a half-pound of black tar heroin. The illicit substances were meant for distribution across the Quad Cities region during the summer and fall of 2019.

\\

One particularly chilling detail revealed that Hernandez-Barajas used hollowed-out candles to distribute one pound of methamphetamine at a time, showing his brazen tactics even behind bars. In January 2020, he arranged for the shipment of black tar heroin, further solidifying his role as a kingpin in the drug trade.

\\

Despite his incarcerated status, Hernandez-Barajas managed to acquire a cell phone and communicate with Hicks to arrange these dangerous shipments. His July 14, 2021, guilty plea only added weight to the charges brought against him by the United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa.

\\

The investigation into Hernandez-Barajas’s activities was a collaborative effort by the Quad City Metropolitan Enforcement Group, highlighting the unity among law enforcement in dismantling organized crime networks.