Investigation starting in Cañon City leads to multistate fentanyl distribution drug bust

CAÑON CITY, Colo. (KRDO) - The Colorado Bureau of Investigations (CBI) says agents were able to catch people with ties to an international drug cartel thanks to an investigation that started in Cañon City.

According to the agency, the investigation kicked off last October when the CBI and DEA identified initial suspects. Those targets led them to identify other suspects across New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Mexico.

The CBI says they believe the crime ring has ties to the Sinaloa Cartel. During their investigation, they identified their main target: 40-year-old Rafael Salazar-Amaya.

Last week, multiple agencies took part in a search at two different homes in the Denver Metro area. The searches, according to the CBI, resulted in the seizure of 800,000 fentanyl pills, fentanyl powder, methamphetamine, heroin, and approximately $60,000 in cash.

“This was a meticulous operation that required interagency cooperation to take down a massive operation,” said Dan Volz, Deputy Director of Investigations for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, in a release. “Every pill taken off the streets is one less potential overdose death.”

The CBI says Salazar-Amaya was arrested and faces charges relating to violations of the Colorado Organized Crime Control Act (COCCA), conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, distribution of a controlled substance, and special offender charges.

Salazar-Amaya and the three other people arrested in the bust are undocumented immigrants, according to the CBI.

Those arrests include:

• Fernando Noriega-Alvarado, 52: facing 13 counts including COCCA, conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, distribution of a controlled substance, and special offender charges.
• Celedonio Pulido-Romero, 31: facing 23 counts including COCCA, conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, distribution of a controlled substance, and special offender charges.
• An unnamed male, 24: facing 7 counts including COCCA, conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, and distribution of a controlled substance.