May 7, 2010

TEXAN PLEADS GUILTY TO POSSESSING 436,000 ECSTASY PILLS

WICHITA, KAN. – Edgar E. Juarez, 21, San Antonio, Texas, has pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute more than 200 pounds of Ecstasy, U.S. Attorney Lanny Welch said today.

In his plea, Juarez admitted that he was arrested Dec. 4, 2009, while he was carrying more than 436,000 pills of Ecstasy (MDMA) in the trunk of his car. A Kansas Highway Patrol Trooper approached Juarez at a fuel stop on Highway I-70 in Ellis County, Kan. When the trooper told Juarez he was going to call for a drug dog, Juarez fled on foot, entering the station’s building on one side and exiting on the other. He was arrested later at a laundry room of a nearby hotel.

Investigators found 44 bags of Ecstasy in the trunk of the Cadillac Juarez was driving.

Sentencing is set for July 22, 2010. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine up to $1 million. Welch commended the Kansas Highway Patrol, the Drug Enforcement Administration and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Chad Sublet for their work on the case.