FRESNO, Calif. - Luis Noe Hernandez Rojo, 34, of Orange, California, pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl and heroin, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, on Aug. 7, 2019, Hernandez Rojo sold approximately 2,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl to an undercover agent in Bakersfield. On Dec. 13, 2019, Hernandez Rojo was arrested while driving to Fresno with more than 7 kilograms of counterfeit oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl, nearly 2 kilograms of fentanyl powder, and 7 kilograms of heroin, which were slated for delivery to the same undercover agent.
This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica A. Massey is prosecuting the case.
Hernandez Rojo is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on July 17, 2023. Hernandez Rojo faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $10 million fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys