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Police: Over 220,000 fentanyl pills seized in one stop, more than all of 2020

Car dealership drug bust.png
Posted at 9:14 PM, Feb 03, 2022
and last updated 2022-02-03 21:14:18-05

PHOENIX — Three men have been arrested after a large drug bustat an Arizona car dealership.

On January 20, DEA officers arrested three men believed to be distributing methamphetamine as well as pills containing fentanyl from were arrested after the illegal drugs were found at a Phoenix car dealership. 20 pounds of methamphetamine along with 4,000 pills marked with "M30" on them believed to contain fentanyl and 14 guns along with two vehicles were seized from the local business.

Marco Ortiz, 31, was arrested and now faces one count of possession of dangerous drugs for sale. Hiram Velasquez-Amarillas, 35, faces one count of possession of dangerous drugs for sale and one count of possession of narcotic drugs for sale.

Cesar Avila-Aguilar, 52, faces one count of possession of dangerous drugs for sale, one count of possession of narcotic drugs for sale, and two counts of misconduct involving weapons.

On Wednesday, Arizona law enforcement said theystopped a vehicle and noticed "inconsistencies" with the driver's story and had evidence to investigate further, according to KNXV who obtained a report from police.

Deputies said they searched the vehicle and spotted four large buffet-style pans filled with food. While inspecting the pans deputies discovered that the pans has been modified and were concealing a large number of fentanyl pills.

A total of 227,000 fentanyl pills were seized in the stop, according to authorities. The driver was identified as 26-year-old Kevin Saldivar Sosa, who was arrested and booked into a local jail.