MARTINSBURG, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Three individuals have pleaded guilty for their involvement in a large-scale drug trafficking organization operating in Berkeley and Jefferson counties, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of West Virginia.
Juan Carlos Suarez-Lugo, 55, of Martinsburg, and Alexis Alvarado, 38, of Ranson, each admitted to conspiring to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
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Mauricio Antonio Alvarado-Flores, 38, a citizen of El Salvador, pleaded guilty to the same drug conspiracy charge, as well as to illegal reentry into the United States.
Court documents and testimony revealed that the three men collaborated with others to distribute cocaine throughout the region as part of an organized drug trafficking network.
Each defendant faces a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 40 years in federal prison on the drug charges. Alvarado-Flores may receive an additional sentence of up to two years for the illegal reentry offense.
Sentencing will be determined by a federal judge, who will weigh U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Omps-Botteicher. It stemmed from a broad investigation led by the Eastern Panhandle Drug Task Force and supported by over two dozen local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies across the country.
The investigation is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide Department of Justice initiative aimed at dismantling transnational criminal organizations and protecting communities from violent crime and drug trafficking.
