Indy man sentenced to federal prison for trafficking heroin mixed with fentanyl
Charles Kirby, 45, of Indianapolis was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after being convicted of heroin trafficking conspiracy and attempted possession with the intent to distribute heroin, according to a news release from the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Indiana.
Kirby and co-conspirators, Elias Parada-Borquez, Javier Lopez-Juarez, and Denice Cardenas, planned to distribute 2,354 grams of a heroin-fentanyl mixture in Indianapolis, the release said. One kilogram of fentanyl has the potential to kill 500,000 people, the release said.
On May 13, 2019, law enforcement officers initiated a traffic stop of a vehicle for traffic violations on I-70 in Foristell, Missouri. Lopez-Juarez was driving the vehicle and Cardenas and Parada-Borquez were passengers. A K-9 officer approached the vehicle and indicated to the presence of narcotics, the release said, and the vehicle was subsequently searched.
Op/Ed: Indiana will need 5,000 nurses by 2031. Here are ways to fix the nursing shortage.
When the rear spare tire on the vehicle was removed, officers found three individually wrapped packages later determined to be a heroin-fentanyl mixture.
Officers learned that Lopez-Juarez, Parada-Borquez and Cardenas had picked the drugs up in San Bernadino, California and planned to deliver the heroin-fentanyl mixture to Kirby who planned to sell the drugs in Indianapolis, according to the release. The three were supposed to wait in Indianapolis until Kirby sold the drugs to collect the proceeds.
Kirby was later arrested for his role in the drug trafficking after further investigation. He was sentenced after a three-day federal jury trial in Indianapolis. He will be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for five years following his release from prison.
The three others pleaded guilty to their participation in the trafficking conspiracy and received the sentences listed below, the release said.
Parada-Borquez, 42, of Mexico, was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison followed by one year of supervised release on September 29, 2022.
Lopez-Juarez, 24, of San Bernadino, California, was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison followed by two years of supervised release on November 17, 2020.
Cardenas, 40, of San Bernadino, California, was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison followed by four years of supervised release on September 26, 2022.
The DEA Indianapolis Field Office investigated in conjunction with the DEA St. Louis Field Office. The St. Charles County Police Department in Missouri provided assistance.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indy man sentenced to prison after convicted for heroin trafficking
