A Wake County man has been sentenced to over 10 years in federal prison following drug and firearm convictions. Daniel Oswaldo Santos-Soto, a 25-year-old reported illegal immigrant, received a 130-month sentence for his involvement in methamphetamine distribution and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. This announcement was confirmed in a news release by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
Details from the court indicate, that on August 27, 2023, Santos-Soto was apprehended after a controlled drug buy orchestrated by the Nash County Sheriff's Office (NCSO), which had deployed a confidential source to set up the purchase. Santos-Soto, had made arrangements to deliver roughly 10 ounces of methamphetamine at a gas station in Spring Hope the following day. During the sting, NCSO detained Santos-Soto after a K-9 signaled the presence of narcotics in his vehicle, leading to the discovery of over 83 grams of methamphetamine and an SKS rifle.
In the statement released today, authorities revealed that Santos-Soto is a non-citizen from Mexico who arrived in the United States in 2017 and had been residing in Wake County without prior criminal incidents until his 2023 arrest.
U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III handed down the sentence, with Acting U.S. Attorney Daniel P. Bubar, for the Eastern District of North Carolina, formally announcing the outcome. "After Santos-Soto pleaded guilty to the charges on April 14, 2025," the agencies involved in the case, such as the NCSO and the Drug Enforcement Administration and, were credited for their work on the investigation which ultimately led to this conviction, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly Dixon heading the prosecution.
