A Portland drug trafficker was slammed with a 108-month stint in federal prison for his role in a fentanyl distribution network linked to Mexican cartels. Francisco Moncada, 28, was handed down his sentence after pleading guilty to conspiring and possessing with intent to distribute the deadly drug, plus firearm charges.
According to court documents cited by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the DEA started to to unravel Moncada's operation in October 2021, which spanned across the Portland area and parts of Washington State. Investigators got a break in April 2022 when they identified Moncada, a significant player in the organization, managing the flow of fentanyl into the community.
The investigation led to two major busts involving Moncada—a stop on April 18, 2022, that yielded approximately 15 pounds of fentanyl, and another stop on April 28, 2022, where an additional 10 pounds of the substance were seized. Not long after, law enforcement uncovered Moncada's involvement in the distribution of firearms among his associates.
Searches of Moncada's properties in Portland and Vancouver on May 20, 2022, led to the seizure of seven firearms and two more pounds of fentanyl. Across the broader operation, approximately 50 pounds of fentanyl and significant quantities of other drugs were confiscated. Sixteen arrests have been linked to his network.
On December 20, 2023, Moncada became the tenth individual in his drug trafficking ring to plead guilty, with sentencing for four associates still pending and one member on the run. The case was a concerted effort between the DEA and various other federal and local law enforcement agencies, demonstrating the collective resolve to dismantle high-level trafficking organizations.
