Two Arizona Men Sentenced for Conspiracy and Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa - United States Attorney Marc Krickbaum announced that on December 6, 2018, 39 year-old Richard Ortiz and 34 year-old Gerardo Alatorre Quintero were sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Stephanie M. Rose. Ortiz was sentenced to 60 months of imprisonment, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Alatorre Quintero was sentenced to 120 months of imprisonment, to be followed by five years of supervised release. Ortiz pled guilty to possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance on July 6, 2018. Alatorre Quintero pled guilty to the same charge on August 7, 2018.

On November 17, 2017, Ortiz and Alatorre Quintero were driving a U-Haul truck when they were stopped by a Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s deputy for speeding. Ortiz gave the deputy permission to search the U-Haul, and the deputy located 25 packages hidden inside tires inside the U-Haul. The heroin weighed 6.97 kilograms, and the fentanyl weighed 15.62 kilograms.

This matter was investigated by the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office, the Southwest Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force, and Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement (DNE). This case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.