A federal grand jury in Utah returned an indictment Wednesday charging two foreign nationals with possession and distribution of narcotics, including cocaine and heroin.
According to the complaint and law enforcement affidavit, on March 30, 2023, Gildardo Ramirez Garcia, 40, and Luis Felipe Felix-Campos, 31, were served a search warrant at each of their residences in Salt Lake County, Utah. The Wasatch Metro Drug Task Force (WMDTF) consisting of the FBI and Davis Metro Narcotic Strike Force (DMNSF), is conducting a criminal investigation into Garcia and Felix-Campos, and other co-conspirators of a drug trafficking organization believed to be facilitating the distribution of large quantities of narcotics throughout Utah. As a result of the investigation, heroin and cocaine were recovered. Felix-Campos later admitted the cocaine in his residence belonged to him.
In the indictment, Garcia is charged with possession of heroin with the intent to distribute and possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute. Felix-Campos is charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute and reentry of a previously removed alien. The defendants are scheduled for their initial court appearance April 13, 2023, in courtroom 8.4 before a U.S. Magistrate Judge at the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse in Salt Lake City, Utah. Felix-Campos is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. and Garcia is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.
U.S. Attorney Trina A. Higgins for the District of Utah made the announcement.
The case is being investigated by the FBI Wasatch Metro Drug Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorney, Stephen L. Nelson, of the District of Utah is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
An indictment is merely an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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