Two Honduran nationals living in Gresham are facing federal charges for transporting hundreds of thousands of counterfeit prescription pills containing fentanyl and several pounds of powdered fentanyl from California to Portland for resale.
Kevin Martinez-Avila, 27, and Allen Moya-Vargas, 29, have been charged with conspiring with one another and others to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl and possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl.
According to court documents, in February 2023, investigators from the Westside Interagency Narcotics Team (WIN) learned a drug courier from California was transporting a large load of fentanyl to somewhere in or around Portland.
On February 22, 2023, WIN investigators located the courier’s vehicle and followed it to a residence in Gresham. Soon after, investigators observed Martinez-Avila drive away from the residence. They stopped his vehicle, searched it pursuant to a state search warrant, and located 47 grams of powdered fentanyl.
Inside the Gresham residence, investigators located Moya-Vargas, 150,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl and more than seven pounds of powdered fentanyl.
Investigators believe the residence was being used by Martinez-Avila and Moya-Vargas’ drug trafficking organization to unload and store fentanyl brought to the Portland area before it was distributed to others.
Both men made their initial appearances in federal court on May 19 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jolie A. Russo. They were arraigned, pleaded not guilty, and ordered detained pending a jury trial scheduled to begin on June 27, 2023.
If convicted, Martinez-Avila and Moya-Vargas face maximum sentences of life in federal prison with 10-year mandatory minimum sentences. This case was investigated by WIN and is being prosecuted by Scott M. Kerin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
WIN includes representatives from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Beaverton and Hillsboro Police Departments, Oregon National Guard Counter Drug Program, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and Homeland Security Investigations.
