Colorado drug trafficking leader sentenced to more than 300 years in prison

A 67-year-old Colorado man has been convicted of running a drug trafficking ring and sentenced to 376 years in prison, county officials said.

Jose Arellano-Arredondo was found guilty in June on more than 40 drug and money laundering charges, according to an Aug. 15 news release from the Weld County District Attorney’s Office.

Arellano-Arredondo was convicted last week, the press release said.

Arellano-Arredondo’s illegal activities continued for years and impacted countless lives, according to Deputy District Attorney Michael Pirraglia.

“For years, this man has flooded our streets and communities with massive amounts of poison. The true extent of the lives he has destroyed may never be known. He has exploited the addictions of others for personal gain, and we will not tolerate this behavior in our community,” he said in the release.

In 2019, an undercover investigation into Arellano-Arredondo’s criminal activities was launched, led by the Weld County Drug Task Force.

The prosecution confirmed that the investigation uncovered a drug trafficking ring in which drugs were smuggled from Mexico into two U.S. states, including Nevada and Arizona, before reaching Arellano-Arredondo in Greeley, Colorado, ultimately leading to his conviction.

In September 2020, detectives conducted undercover purchases at Arellano-Arredondo’s home.

During their investigation, drug enforcement officers seized tens of thousands of dollars worth of narcotics and cash, all of which were traced to Arellano-Arredondo and his accomplices.

“During the investigation into Arellano-Arredondo’s operation, law enforcement allegedly intercepted and seized thousands of fentanyl pills, multiple kilograms of methamphetamine, several ounces of cocaine, and over $100,000 in cash,” the press release said.

A national epidemic

According to estimates from the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, more than 100,000 people will die from drug overdoses in the United States in 2023.

Nearly three-quarters of drug overdose deaths are linked to fentanyl. The CDC estimates that about 75,000 Americans will die from overdoses involving synthetic opioids, primarily fentanyl, in 2023.

Most of the fentanyl entering the United States comes from Mexico. However, the precursor chemicals needed to produce the drug are shipped in large quantities from China.

Mexican drug cartels then produce the drug, which is often added to other narcotics before being shipped to the United States.

More than half a billion lethal doses of fentanyl have been seized in Texas alone, more than enough to kill the entire population of the United States.