PM:
A federal jury has convicted Ricardo Orizaba-Zendejas of conspiring to distribute large quantities of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine, and of possessing a firearm to further a drug trafficking crime in a case tied to the killings of a Yakima, Washington, couple who investigators say tried to leave the operation and cooperate with federal agents.
After about six hours of deliberations, jurors found Orizaba, a Mexican national in the United States illegally, guilty on both counts. Prosecutors said he worked as a dealer and enforcer for a drug trafficking cell based in Yakima, Washington, that sourced narcotics from Mexico and moved them through ports of entry in the Southern District of California before distributing them in central Washington…
Authorities then launched what prosecutors called an exhaustive, years-long search involving geophysicists, ground-penetrating radar, aircraft, laser imaging, soil testing, cadaver dogs, and other specialized techniques. More than a year after the victims’ deaths, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents recovered the victims’ remains on September 13, 2023, assisted by the Washington State Police Crime Scene Investigations team. READ MORE