Man accused of running Sinaloa cartel-linked operation from Salem

Federal authorities have arrested a man accused of leading a drug trafficking organization from Salem with ties to the Sinaloa cartel in what they described as the largest seizure of fentanyl in U.S. history.

A federal grand jury on April 24 indicted Heriberto Salazar Amaya, 36, on 12 criminal charges including conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and violating U.S. immigration laws by illegally re-entering the country after previously being deported. Salazar Amaya is a Mexican national, according to court documents.

At a press conference Tuesday in Washington, D.C., U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi painted a picture of a kingpin orchestrating the flow of deadly drugs into the U.S. while hiding out in Salem, far removed from the operation’s dirty work.

“He insulated himself. He was in Oregon,” Bondi said. “He had millions of dollars, he had a Mercedes, he had a truck, he had other things, but he did not have any drugs on him because he was the leader.”

Salazar Amaya was one of 17 people charged as part of the same investigation. They are accused of running a sophisticated criminal enterprise that trafficked drugs from Mexico into the US. They operated in five western U.S. states, spanning from Oregon to New Mexico, according to federal court documents.

Their arrests were part of a highly publicized effort by the Trump administration to crack down on both drug trafficking and unauthorized immigration to the U.S.

As part of the drug investigation, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration seized nearly 4.2 million fentanyl pills, 11.5 kilograms of fentanyl powder, 79 pounds of meth, 4.5 kilograms of heroin, 7.5 kilograms of cocaine and $4.4 million in cash, court records showed.

Authorities also seized 41 weapons – some fully automatic conversion devices and some without serial numbers – as well as seven vehicles, court records showed. 

In Salem alone, they seized more than $2.8 million in U.S. currency, $50,000 worth of jewelry and two vehicles, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a press release Tuesday.

In the statement, Bondi described the takedown as “a significant blow against the Sinaloa Cartel.”

The U.S. Department of State in February described the organization as one of the world’s most powerful drug cartels, which “has used violence to murder, kidnap, and intimidate civilians, government officials and journalists.”

The U.S. Marshals Service booked Salazar Amaya into the Multnomah County Jail on April 28, the jail’s roster showed. He was later moved to the Sheridan Federal Correctional Institution, where he remained as of Tuesday afternoon.

Ryan Ellison, U.S. Attorney for the District of New Mexico, said at the press conference that Salazar Amaya was previously deported twice from the U.S. but did not say when. Salazar Amaya also faces charges of hiring an unauthorized alien and conspiracy to harbor unauthorized aliens.

Contact reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian: [email protected] or 503-929-3053.

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