ST. GEORGE — A kilo of suspected cocaine, 12 pounds of heroin and hundreds of fentanyl pills were seized when an officer pulled over two SUVs for registration violations Tuesday in St. George.
An officer observed two dark-colored SUV’s pulling out of the gas station on Brigham Road shortly after 9:30 p.m. One of the vehicles had an expired license plate issued out of Florida, while the second had Utah plates with revoked registration, according to arrest documents filed in 5th District Court.
The SUV with Florida plates was stopped first, while the second SUV was stopped shortly thereafter when officers signaled for the SUV to pull off the roadway, the arrest documents said.
The driver of the first SUV handed officers his identification card, issued out of Mexico, identifying himself as Jose Ezequiel Alvarado Villarreal, 23. The front-seat passenger, who produced his Mexican ID, was identified as 40-year-old Leonel Villareal Olivas, 40.
The registered owner of the second SUV with Utah plates was identified by his Miexican ID card as Roberto Figueroa Gutierrez, 29, who told officers his insurance card was not valid, while the driver was identified through, an ID card issued out of Sinaloa, Mexico, as Lorena Gonzalez Chiquete, 47, according to the report.
When backup officers and a translator arrived, all occupants were asked to exit both vehicles as a K-9 unit was deployed to conduct an exterior, free-air sniff around the two vehicles, the report states. The animal alerted officers to the possible presence of narcotics.
During a search of the first SUV with Florida plates, officers found three sandwich-size baggies containing blue pills that were consistent with fentanyl.
During a search of the second SUV with Utah plates, officers found a suitcase located in the back of the vehicle and inside they found one kilo of suspected cocaine, along with four wrapped bundles of a black tar substance consistent with heroin. Each package, according to the report, weighed approximately 3 pounds. A smaller amount of cocaine was located in the center console of the SUV as well.
All four occupants were transported and booked into Purgatory Correctional Facility on multiple charges.
According to a 2019 report released by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), if broken down into street-level sales, the 12 pounds of heroin seized was valued at nearly $365,000, while 1.0 kilo of cocaine has a street value of more than $120,000.
In all, the amount recovered during Tuesday’s stop, including the fentanyl pills, was valued at more than $500,000.
Figuerao and Chiquete each were booked into jail and now face two second-degree felony charges of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance, along with misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance and paraphernalia. Chiquet also faces an additional charge for driving on a suspended license.
Olivas and Villarreal each face one second-degree felony count of possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
The officer also requested a no-bail hold on all four suspects, citing the fact they pose a flight risk with no ties to St. George or the surrounding area, and while the suspects were “cooperative” the officer noted, each received numerous calls and texts from individuals asking if they should pick them up or recover their vehicles during the traffic stop and subsequent arrest.
The officer closed by saying the group “will flee given that chance” due to concerns about being deported.
On Wednesday morning, an order to hold without bail was signed by District Judge Jeffery Wilcox and the suspects remain in custody at this time.
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.