PORTLAND, Ore.—Abel Lomas Murillo, 26, of Weston, Oregon,
was sentenced today to 235 months in federal prison and five years’ supervised
release for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine.
Murillo previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy
to possess with the intent to distribute methamphetamine on April 15, 2019.
According to court documents, in November 2017, the Blue
Mountain Enforcement Narcotics Team (BENT), the Oregon State Police (OSP) and
the FBI began investigating a drug trafficking organization led by Murillo.
Abel Murillo sourced drugs from his older brother and
co-defendant Noel Murillo who lived in Vacaville, California in the Eastern
District of California. The investigation revealed that as early as July 2017,
Noel Murillo transported drugs from Vacaville to Klamath Fall, Oregon where a
courier would then deliver them to his brother. Abel Murillo and his
co-conspirators also made multiple trips to Medford, Oregon to pick up drugs
and transport them back to Morrow and Umatilla Counties for distribution in
Northeast Oregon and Southeast Washington.
In January 2018, an OSP trooper stopped one of the Murillo
brothers’ couriers, Luis Alberto Navarro, in a vehicle traveling near Klamath
Falls en route to Umatilla County. A search of the vehicle revealed 11
concealed packages containing more than 8 kilograms of methamphetamine.
In early May 2018, as the investigation continued, Abel
Murillo enlisted another courier, Noel Ponce Villegas, to drive methamphetamine
from Medford to Boardman, Oregon. Investigators surveilled Murillo as he
traveled from Umatilla County to a storage locker in Medford and loaded a
trailer being pulled by his truck. Murillo paid Villegas to drive his truck and
trailer while he followed to minimize his own risk. In the early morning hours
of May 6, 2018, investigators from BENT, OSP and FBI stopped Murillo and
Villegas as they drove near mile marker 102 on Interstate 84.
Investigators seized 42 packages of methamphetamine, 36 of
which were concealed in a false bottom of a propane tank. The packages
contained approximately 17.6 kilograms of methamphetamine. Later the same day,
investigators executed a search warrant at Murillo’s residence, seizing 29
firearms and body armor. Pursuant to a separate search warrants, another 10
pounds of methamphetamine and five firearms were found in a Medford storage
locker Murillo had visited earlier in the weekend.
During sentencing, U.S. District Court Judge Michael H.
Simon ordered Murillo to pay $20,000 to satisfy a forfeiture money judgment.
On May 7, 2018, Navarro pleaded guilty to one count of
possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine. He will be sentenced
on October 15, 2019.
On April 18, 2019, Villegas pleaded guilty to one count of
possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine. He will be sentenced
on December 3, 2019.
Co-defendant Noel Murillo is charged with one count of
conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. A three-day
jury trial is scheduled for November 5, 2019.
This case was investigated by BENT, OSP and the FBI and
prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.
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