Bend transient accused of trafficking fentanyl from Portland to C.O. arrested for third time in a year

Runners of Honduran-sourced drug were 'centralized within the Hunnell Road area,' deputies say

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – A 41-year-old transient accused of distributing Honduran-sourced fentanyl from the Portland area to Central Oregon was arrested Monday – his third arrest by drug detectives in less than a year, Deschutes County sheriff’s deputies said.

The sheriff’s Office Street Crime Unit concluded its recent investigation with the arrest of the suspect,who was part an investigation focusing on distribution of commercial quantities of fentanyl and counterfeit fentanyl pills from the Portland area, Sergeant Jason Wall said Tuesday.

Sheriff’s detectives tried to contact the suspect in mid-June, but he fled a traffic stop in his vehicle and later on foot, Wall said. While he eluded capture, Street Crimes Unit detectives applied for and were granted a search warrant for the vehicle Gomez was traveling in.

The result of that search yielded over 6,000 fentanyl pills, along with nearly a half-pound of powdered fentanyl, Wall said. They were packaged for transport and hidden in the vehicle, along with other indicators of commercial drug sales.

Wall said detectives learned the man was part of a fentanyl distribution network operating in Deschutes County and being sourced by a Honduran Drug Trafficking Organization (DTO) from the Portland metro area.

He is accused of utilizing "a network of drug runners that were centralized within the Hunnell Road area of Bend," Wall said in a news release. "The drug runners would complete transactions throughout Deschutes County and later return the proceeds to (the suspect), who would, in turn, utilize his connection with the DTO to purchase larger commercial quantities of fentanyl."

After detectives' drug seizure, Wall said, the man fled the area for several weeks.

Using "various investigative techniques," he said, SCU detectives located the suspect upon his return to the area, arresting him and a second man, a 38-year-old transient, on a parole violation warrant after a short foot pursuit.

The drug trafficking suspect was in possession of powdered fentanyl and suspected methamphetamine during his arrest, the sergeant said, adding, "This is the third such narcotics investigation that resulted in (his) arrest by narcotics detectives in less than one year."

He was jailed on charges of drug possession, manufacturing and attempted delivery.

"The Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement (CODE) team and the City of Bend Police Department for their assistance in this investigation," Wall concluded.