William J. Edwards, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and C. Frank Figliuzzi, Special Agent in Charge of the Cleveland Division of the FBI, announced that a federal grand jury sitting in Cleveland, Ohio, returned a 5-count indictment charging:

1. Juan Carlos Banos, age 48, of Las Vegas, Nevada;

2. Antonio Duran, age 45, of North Olmsted, Ohio (originally from Las Vegas, Nevada); and

3. Rudy D. Tapia, age 24, of North Olmsted, Ohio (originally from Los Angeles, California), with violations of the federal narcotics laws.

Count 1 of the indictment charges Banos, a Cuban national, Duran, a Mexican national, and Tapia with conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute and/or distribution of heroin, cocaine and marijuana.

Count 2 of the indictment charges Banos individually with possession with the intent to distribute 250 grams of heroin.

Count 3 of the indictment charges Duran and Tapia with possession with the intent to distribute 1,750 grams of heroin.

Count 4 of the indictment charges Duran and Tapia with possession with the intent to distribute 25 kilograms of cocaine.

Count 5 of the indictment charges Duran with operating a drug house in North Olmsted, Ohio.

If convicted, the defendants’ sentences will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendants’ prior criminal records, if any, the defendants’ roles in the offenses and the unique characteristics of the violations. In all cases, the sentences will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases they will be less than the maximum.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph M. Pinjuh following an 18 month investigation code named "Operation Red Rider", which included several Title III wire taps on the cellular telephones of Sean Inniss, aka Red, and Ulises Rutinel, aka Cabeza. The investigation revealed that David Calderon-Valentin, an illegal Dominican national residing in New York, New York, and his associates would arrange for large quantities of heroin to be brought to Cleveland, Ohio, from New York. Thereafter, Rutinel and Inniss, assisted by other members of the conspiracy, would sell the heroin to their various customers in the greater Cleveland, Ohio area. Additionally, Inniss and Rutinel would purchase kilogram amounts of cocaine and marijuana from Banos and sell the drugs to their various customers throughout Northeast Ohio. During the investigation, more than ten thousand dollars worth of cocaine was purchased from Inniss and Rutinel. Additionally, on November 9, 2007, investigating agents and officers seized over $20,000 worth of heroin, $350 worth of marijuana and two illegal firearms during the arrests and subsequent searches of Inniss, Rutinel, and their associates.

The investigation resulted in the conviction of Inniss, Rutinel and 16 other co-conspirators in federal district court. Banos remained a fugitive for over four months until he was arrested by the Ohio State Highway Patrol on May 28, 2008, near Youngstown, Ohio. Further investigation on that day led to the arrest of Banos’ supplier, Antonio Duran, and his partner, Rudy D. Tapia, in North Olmsted, Ohio. A search of Duran’s rented North Olmsted home resulted in the seizure of 25 kilograms of cocaine worth in excess of $650,000, 1,750 grams of heroin worth in excess of $115,000, two loaded MAC-11 assault weapons with laser sights and various items used in the packaging and cutting of cocaine and heroin.

The investigation was conducted by agents and task force officers of the Northern Ohio Law Enforcement Task Force (NOLETF). The NOLETF is a long standing multi-agency task force comprised of investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Cleveland Division of Police, Cleveland Heights Police Department (CHPD), Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO), Euclid Police Department (EPD), Lake County Narcotics Agency, Regional Transit Authority (RTA) Police Department, Willoughby Hills Police Department and Shaker Heights Police Department (SHPD). The NOLETF is also one of the initial Ohio High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) initiatives. The HIDTA Program supports and helps coordinate numerous Ohio drug task forces in their efforts to eliminate, or reduce drug-trafficking in the State of Ohio.
An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government's burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.