SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Attorney’s Office has charged nine defendants, many members of the same family, with engaging in a conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, announced United States Attorney David L. Anderson and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Chris Nielsen.  The charges were made in a complaint filed July 26, 2019, and unsealed today following the arrest of eight defendants.  

The complaint, described by U.S. Attorney Anderson in a press conference today, is one of the first steps in the Federal Initiative for the Tenderloin (FIT).  The initiative seeks to reduce crime in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco and is described here.  

The complaint describes a conspiracy involving a large-scale drug trafficking organization a network extending across the Bay Area.  According to the complaint, between March 4, 2019, and July 26, 2019, Eduardo Alfonso Viera-Chirinos, a/k/a “Rojo”, worked with his family members Victor Viera-Chirinos, a/k/a “Mojarra”; Jorge Alberto Viera-Chirinos; Jorge Enrique Torres-Viera, a/k/a “Enrique”; and Karen Castro-Torres, a/k/a “Delany Ellieth Cardona Velasquez”, a/k/a “Belanie Elyzabeth Artiaga”, to obtain drugs.  The defendants brought the drugs from Mexico through Los Angeles to the Bay Area.  The defendants then repackaged the drugs for redistribution both in the Bay Area and in Seattle.  The complaint also describes the execution of search warrants in June 2018 by the Richmond and San Francisco Police Departments and how Jorge Alberto Viera-Chirinos thereafter remained in the Bay Area to run the family drug-trafficking business while Eduardo Alfonso Viera-Chirinos and his partner, Karen Castro-Torres, moved to Seattle.

Also described in the complaint is how Karen Castro-Torres, Cilder Velasquez, and Jorge Enrique Torres-Viera coordinated housing for individuals who redistributed drugs for the drug-trafficking organization.  Drug redistributors, including Gustavo Adolfo Gamez-Velasquez and Luis Almicar Erazo-Centeno, allegedly placed orders for drugs on a regular basis from Cilder Velasquez and Jorge Enrique Torres-Viera.  The complaint includes excerpts from calls and text messages intercepted over federally authorized wiretaps.  According to the complaint, the Viera family obtained drugs in Los Angeles, packaged them for local redistribution in Livermore, Calif., and then shipped the drugs to the Seattle area.  Eduardo Alfonso Viera-Chirinos, speaking with an individual using a Honduras-based area code, also allegedly plotted to murder an individual in Honduras.  The complaint also describes a traffic stop in Washington State during which Alexander Gonzalez-Vasquez and Eduardo Alfonso Viera-Chirinos allegedly concealed cocaine and heroin in a hidden compartment inside Gonzalez’s truck.  

DEA Special Agent in Charge Chris Nielsen stated, “Street-level drug dealing has, unfortunately, become somewhat 'normalized' in the Tenderloin. As for me and my law enforcement partners, and I suspect most people in this community, we are tired of drug traffickers preying on and profiting from the vulnerable. This case and the Federal Initiative for the Tenderloin is a sustained effort, and we are focused on drug dealers, their sources of supply and anyone else who assists them, while keeping in mind we need to help those suffering from addiction.  Our message is simple: we will continue to do our best to prevent these bold criminals from destroying any more lives.  There is much work to be done.”

All defendants are charged with engaging in a conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(C).  If convicted, defendants face up to 20 years’ imprisonment and between 3 years and a lifetime term of supervised release.  Further, additional fines, forfeitures, and restitution may be ordered; however, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.  

The complaint contains allegations only, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.  

Several of the defendants were arrested on July 26, 2019, as part of a criminal enforcement operation.  

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julie Garcia, Sailaja Paidipaty, and Ryan Rezaei are prosecuting the case.  The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the DEA, San Francisco Police Department, and Richmond Police Department.

 

SAN FRANCISCO – In his first press conference since being sworn in as the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California, the Honorable David L. Anderson announced a new federal initiative to address crime in San Francisco’s Tenderloin District.  The program, called the Federal Initiative for the Tenderloin, brings together the resources of more than 15 federal law enforcement agencies to combat endemic drug trafficking, firearms offenses, robberies, and other crime in the neighborhood.  At today’s press conference, U.S. Attorney Anderson also announced charges against 32 individuals as the first steps in implementing the new program.

Since being sworn in on January 15, 2019, U.S. Attorney Anderson has been the lead law-enforcement officer in the Northern District of California.  At today’s press conference, he was flanked by 13 law-enforcement partners including representatives from such agencies as the U.S. Marshal Service; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  The full list of federal participants is below.  Each partnering agency has pledged resources to investigate federal crime in the Tenderloin neighborhood, as well as to prioritize investigations and support the resulting prosecutions that follow.  For his part, U.S. Attorney Anderson announced that his office will devote 15 Assistant United States Attorneys (“AUSAs”) to the initiative.  

The Tenderloin neighborhood encompasses about 50 square blocks of downtown San Francisco.  Generally, it is bounded on the north by Geary Street, on the east by Powell Street, on the south by Mission Street, and on the west by Van Ness Avenue.  U.S. Attorney Anderson described the Tenderloin as ethnically, socially, and racially diverse; relatively more affordable than other neighborhoods in San Francisco; and having one of the highest concentrations of school-aged children in San Francisco according to published reports.  These attributes, argued U.S. Attorney Anderson, make for a wonderful neighborhood being “smothered by lawlessness.”  “Innocent residents, commuters, tourists, and persons with business in one of the four major federal buildings in the Tenderloin should not be required to run a gauntlet of crime,” said U.S. Attorney Anderson.     

During the press conference, U.S. Attorney Anderson also described some of the parameters of the initiative.  The initiative will prioritize federal charges for criminal misconduct with a nexus to the Tenderloin including drug trafficking, firearms offenses, escape, Hobbs Act robberies, false passports and visas, postal crimes, crimes on federal land, human trafficking, identity theft, and benefits fraud.  The initiative will not be directed against innocent homelessness.  The initiative will not be focused on drug use or possession without distribution.  The initiative will persist for a minimum of one year.  

“The Tenderloin neighborhood deserves the benefits of the rule of law every bit as much as other neighborhoods in this city.” U.S. Attorney Anderson said.  

U.S. Attorney Anderson also announced the existence of a number of law enforcement actions that already have taken place in connection with his plan.  The cases include the following:



Case Name





Case Number





U.S. v. Eduar Ramos et al.





19-CR-0305 RS





U.S. v. Francisco Padilla





19-CR-0306 WHO





U.S. v. Carlos Vargas





19-CR-0360 CRB





U.S. v. Jose Vasquez Arteaga et al.





19-CR-0287 CRB





U.S. v. Julio Viera-Chirinos





19-mj-71156





U.S. v. Eduardo Alfonso Viera-Chirinos et al.





19-mj-71145





U.S. v. Andy Reanos-Moreno et al.





19-mj-71162





U.S. v. Moyses Raudales





19-mj-71171





U.S. v. Henry Jovany Sevilla Sevilla





19-mj-71192





U.S. v. Jose Diaz





19-mj-71169



 

Separate press releases for these cases can be found here:

Thirteen Defendants Charged In Cross-Bay Drug Trafficking Conspiracy

Nine Defendants Charged In International Drug Trafficking Conspiracy

 

“Today,” U.S. Attorney Anderson announced, “we announce the unsealing of ten cases.  So far, there have been 32 individuals charged with more to come. While making no promises about the number or types of cases to be brought or the specific outcomes to be achieved, I can say that we intend to devote substantial federal resources over an extended period of time toward this initiative and the neighborhood that it will serve.”

PARTICIPANT REPRESENTATIVES

David L. Anderson, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California Chris Nielsen, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Jay Bieber, Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal Jennifer Cicolani, Assistant Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Scott Schelble, Assistant Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation Tatum King, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations Timothy McHugh, Deputy Regional Director, Federal Protective Service Thomas Edwards, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Secret Service Mike Sena, Director, Northern California High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area/Northern California Regional Intelligence Center Kareem Carter, Special Agent In Charge, Oakland Field Office, U.S Internal Revenue Service- Criminal Investigation Steve Ryan, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General Don Hoang, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Forest Service Richard Sheehan, Assistant Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service Julie Ryer, Special Agent, U.S. Food and Drug Administration Garrett Shore, Special Agent, U.S. Social Security Administration, Office of the Inspector General