Alex Gonzales, 23, of Tahlequah was arrested following a traffic stop in Wagoner County Tuesday, and agents teamed up with multiple area law enforcement agencies to execute three search warrants on locations, one of which was a storage unit, in Tahlequah Tuesday evening.
Agents working on the investigation reported that over the course of several months, agents made undercover purchases of drugs from Gonzales.
During the execution of the search warrants, task force agents reported finding trafficking weight of substances appearing to be cocaine as well as a firearm. Agents also reported that an undisclosed amount of substances appearing to marijuana as well as an undisclosed amount of cash and two vehicles were seized as result of the investigation.
Participating in the execution of the search warrants were the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Cherokee Nation Marshal Service, Cherokee County Sheriff's Office, and the drug task force.
Task force agents reported that, during the course of their investigation, they learned that Gonzales had previous drug-related charges and that he was in the country illegally. They reported that Gonzales is currently being held at the Wagoner County Jail on charges relating to the traffic stop, as well as immigration charges, and, pending further investigation, he will be transferred to Cherokee County Jail on the charges stemming from the investigation conducted in Cherokee County.
Agents said that District 27 is located within a major drug trafficking corridor used by Mexican drug trafficking operations to transport their product, as well as the proceeds from the sale of their product, into and out of the United States. While there has been somewhat of a decrease in the manufacture of controlled dangerous substances within the district, there has been a steady increase in the amount of drugs being trafficked into the district from Mexico. With the increase in the amount of these drugs being transported in from Mexico, area law enforcement officers are encountering increasing numbers of illegal aliens who are involved in the transport of illicit drugs. In addition to the increase of drugs being transported into the district from Mexico, there has also been an increase in the number of human trafficking cases in the area.
