Sacramento Standard

A federal jury in Fresno has found Alma Lucia Garza, 23, guilty of conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine. The verdict was announced by U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert on Friday after a four-day trial.

Garza was identified as a trusted assistant to Horacio Torrecillas Urias Jr., known as the self-proclaimed M30 King of Fresno. Between November 2, 2021, and March 31, 2022, Garza conspired with Torrecillas Urias and others to obtain counterfeit M30 fentanyl pills and large quantities of cocaine and methamphetamine from sources in Mexico. These drugs were distributed to dealers both inside and outside California.

On January 27, 2022, Garza mailed a package containing cocaine and methamphetamine to a co-defendant in New Mexico. Law enforcement intercepted the package before it reached its destination. On February 9, 2022, Garza traveled with Torrecillas Urias to Sanger to deliver thousands of pills laced with fentanyl and methamphetamine. These pills were seized during a residential search warrant two days later.

Following the investigation, charges were brought against Garza, Torrecillas Urias, and 17 others. With the recent verdict, all defendants have either pleaded or been found guilty. Sentencing for Garza is scheduled for January 6, 2025; she faces up to 20 years in prison. The actual sentence will be determined by the court based on statutory factors and Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

The case resulted from an investigation by multiple agencies including Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Fresno Police Department's Fentanyl Overdose Resolution Team (FORT), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Clovis Police Department, Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol, and the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Justin J. Gilio and Antonio J. Pataca are prosecuting the case.

This investigation is part of Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (S.O.S.), which aims to reduce synthetic opioid supply in high-impact areas while identifying distribution networks and suppliers both domestic and international. Launched in July 2018 by the Justice Department, S.O.S is active in ten federal districts including Eastern District of California.

The effort also falls under an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation which seeks to disrupt high-level criminal organizations using a prosecutor-led approach driven by intelligence across multiple agencies.