Mexican cartel stopped in West Virginia, allegedly trafficking fentanyl and cocaine out of auto shop

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MARTINSBURG, W.V. ( WTRF ) — An alleged drug trafficking organization with ties to the Sinaloa drug cartel has been dismantled after a federal grand jury indicted 25 people.

U.S. Attorney William Ihlenfeld announced charges against individuals accused of operating a large-scale fentanyl and cocaine trafficking operation out of an auto body shop in Martinsburg, West Virginia .

The group is alleged to have imported significant amounts of drugs from Puerto Rico through the U.S. Postal Service as well as from a source connected to the Sinaloa cartel.

Saul Alexi Padilla-Garcia, age 34, of Shepherdstown, West Virginia, and 17 others have been charged after an investigation that included close coordination with federal law enforcement agents in Chicago and Northern California.

“This case underscores the scope of the threat posed by Mexican drug cartels to the people of West Virginia,” said Ihlenfeld. “These transnational organizations will operate anywhere that there is profit to be made, including here in our region. Fortunately, we have one of the best drug task forces in the country to push back against dangerous groups like this one.”

In addition to Padilla-Garcia, those charged include:

• Juan Carlos Suarez-Lugo, 55, of Martinsburg, West Virginia
• Victor Jose Canales, 45
• Alexis Alvarado, 37, of Ranson, West Virginia
• Mauricio Antonio Alvarado-Flores, 37
• Olvin Luis-Melendez Robles, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
• Mario Pellot-Acevedo, 58, of Martinsburg, West Virginia
• Eddi Heredia Cruz, 27, of Shepherdstown, West Virginia
• Jose Alberto Camarena Rocha, 30, of California
• Manuel Sanchez Gomez, 37, of California
• Angel Lopez, 43, of Fresno, California
• Sergio Rubio Pacheco, 33, of Fresno, California
• Moises Marrero, 39, of Ranson, West Virginia
• James Reyes, 54, of Martinsburg, West Virginia
• David Reyes, 60
• Charles Edward Branson, 53, of Martinsburg, West Virginia
• Danny William Mendez Delacruz, 41, of Martinsburg, West Virginia
• Yan Lionel Diaz-Cruz, 27, of Ranson, West Virginia.

The arrests are the culmination of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation that began in 2023. The task force identifies, disrupts and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.

Law enforcement arrested 15 people on Wednesday and are still searching for Gomez, Melendez-Robles and Diaz-Cruz.

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