“Operation Blue Steal” seizes 30 pounds of fentanyl and 25 pounds of methamphetamine

Boulder County, Colo. - The Boulder County Drug Task Force (BCDTF) led the investigation. The District Attorney’s Office presented the case to the Boulder County Grand Jury. The Grand Jury indicted 16 people after a four-month long investigation focused on drug trafficking in Boulder County. In addition to narcotics distribution charges, eight members of the enterprise were indicted on charges of violating the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act (COCCA). Five individuals were also indicted on attempted kidnapping, robbery, and aggravated motor vehicle theft.

On May 12, 2023, the BCDTF began arresting suspects associated with the investigation. Seven search warrants were also executed in the Boulder County and the Denver metro area.

The individuals arrested at this time include:

• Javier Alejandro Roque-Gomez, DOB 05-20-95 (COCCA and narcotics charges)
• Jose Guadalupe Polanco-Perez, DOB 12-13-95 (COCCA and narcotics charges)
• Jose Alfonso Diego-Alvarez, DOB 08-15-03 (COCCA, narcotics, attempted robbery, attempted aggravated motor vehicle theft, and attempted kidnapping charges)
• Carlos Alfonso Ytuarte-Quinones, DOB 04-05-88 (COCCA, narcotics, attempted robbery, attempted aggravated motor vehicle theft, and attempted kidnapping charges)
• Alexis Omar Gasga-Garcia, DOB 06-14-99 (COCCA, narcotics, attempted robbery, attempted aggravated motor vehicle theft, and attempted kidnapping charges)
• Adan Alberto Quiriarte-Jara, DOB 06-14-94 (attempted robbery, attempted aggravated motor vehicle theft, and attempted kidnapping charges)
• Alan E Hernandez-Guzman, DOB 10-12-93 (attempted robbery, attempted aggravated motor vehicle theft, and attempted kidnapping charges)
• Jose Soto-Aviles, DOB 11-14-93 (narcotics charges)
• Candelaria Ramirez-Ibarra (Cande), DOB 12-18-87 (COCCA and narcotics charges)
• Joana Villagrana-Ortiz, DOB 1-24-89 (COCCA and narcotics charges) *Photo not available at this time

Through this investigation, approximately 30 pounds of suspected fentanyl, (roughly 124,000 pills), including traditional “blue” M/30 pills, “rainbow” M/30 pills, and blue “Versace” pills were seized. The street value of the pills is approximately $500,000.

Additionally, 25 pounds of methamphetamine with a street value of approximately $100,000, 2.5 pounds of heroin, and 0.36 pounds of cocaine were seized during the investigation.

The indictments, which include photos of the drugs seized, are available through the courts or the District Attorney’s Office. Please contact Elisabeth Scanlon at the District Attorney’s Office, at escanlon@bouldercounty.org, for copies of the indictment and photos.

The BCDTF includes task force members from the Boulder County Sheriff's Office, Boulder Police Department, District Attorney's Office, and the Lafayette Police Department.

Agencies outside of the BCDTF assisting in the investigation include the Boulder Police Department Special Enforcement Unit, Longmont Department of Public Safety, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), US Marshals Service’s Colorado Violent Offender Task Force, Adams County Sheriff's Office, Arvada Police Department, Aurora Police Department, Colorado State Patrol, Denver Police Department, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Littleton Police Department, Colorado National Guard Counter Drug Taskforce and the Westminster Police Department.

Names of the remaining indicted individuals will not be released until arrests are made. As in all cases, the indictments contain merely allegations, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless or until proven guilty.

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