BUTTE, MT – A California man is facing a potential life sentence after admitting to hauling over 12 pounds of methamphetamine into Butte, Montana. Raymond Perez Ramos, 31, of Long Beach, California, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute meth on Monday, a charge stemming from a sprawling drug conspiracy with alleged ties to the Sinaloa Cartel.
The bust, part of a multi-agency investigation, revealed Ramos and co-defendant Travis Bridger Soderberg were operating a significant drug distribution network in the Silver Bow County area from approximately October 2019 to November 2020. Soderberg previously received an eight-year prison sentence for his role in the scheme. Court documents detail how Ramos, in August 2020, inquired about “work,” a coded term investigators determined referred to transporting methamphetamine.
In November 2020, Ramos transported 12.5 pounds of the drug – roughly 5,600 individual doses – to Montana. Law enforcement intercepted his vehicle upon arrival, discovering the methamphetamine meticulously hidden within the door panels. The seizure marked a key moment in a larger investigation that has already resulted in federal convictions for 22 other individuals connected to the trafficking organization.
The investigation, led by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Montana Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation, involved a complex network of federal, state, and local agencies including the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, ATF, Montana Highway Patrol, the Southwest Montana Drug Task Force, and local law enforcement in Butte-Silver Bow County. The operation is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF), a federal program dedicated to dismantling high-level drug trafficking rings.
Ramos now faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years in prison, and potentially life, along with a potential $10 million fine and at least five years of supervised release. U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto presided over the guilty plea, and sentencing is scheduled for August 14 before U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen. Ramos was released pending sentencing, but his future looks bleak.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan G. Weldon is prosecuting the case. The Grimy Times will continue to follow this case and report on the ongoing efforts to dismantle the Sinaloa Cartel’s reach into Montana communities. The images provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Office show the substantial amount of methamphetamine seized from Ramos’ vehicle, a stark reminder of the drug crisis gripping the nation.
Related Federal Cases
- Alan Daniel Wilson Sentenced to 16 Years for Meth Trafficking, CA, … · California
- Jose Reynaldo Cardenas Jr, Meth Trafficking, Idaho 2024 · Texas
- Meth Trafficking Indictments, Montana 2024 · California
- Christopher Scott Hurst, Meth Trafficking with Firearms, MT 2023 · California
- Brazil Harris, Meth Trafficking, California 2020 · California
Key Facts
- Agency: ATF
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Press Release
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