SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Attorney’s Office has charged thirteen defendants 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 31, 2019, and unsealed today following the arrest of 11 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 with networks extending across the Bay Area.  According to the complaint, from at least January 15, 2019, to July 31, 2019, Andy Reanos-Moreno worked with Karol Erazo-Reanos to rent housing throughout the Easy Bay for persons, including “redistributors,” who were part of the drug-distribution network.  Reanos-Moreno, Erazo-Reanos, and Manuel Arteaga allegedly also supplied the redistributors with heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine.  The redistributors, including Allan Josue Funez Osorto, Brayan Martinez, Josue Natanael Perdomo Moreno, Jose Franklin Rodriguez Garcia, Cesar Estrada Cruz, Arnold Cruz Rodriguez, Christian Rodriguez-Valle, Alex Gomez Barrientos, Eric Montoya Marquez, and Kevin Arteaga-Morales, allegedly traveled to the Tenderloin neighborhood to sell drugs, often by carpooling together across the Bay Bridge.  

According to the criminal complaint, Reanos-Moreno, along with Arteaga, took drug orders on a nearly daily basis from the individuals living in houses across the East Bay.  The persons living in the houses occasionally would negotiate prices and would specify daily the quantities of heroin, cocaine powder, cocaine base, and methamphetamine they wanted to receive.  Reanos-Moreno and Arteaga would then deliver these drugs to redistributors who would travel to the Tenderloin neighborhood to sell the drugs, referring to the neighborhood as “Civic Cen.”  The complaint describes numerous alleged seizures of heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine from houses where the redistributors lived as well as numerous seizures of drugs from the redistributors in the Tenderloin, including near several federal buildings.  

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, the 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 Tuesday, August 6, 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.