Drug Dealer Sentenced to Life Imprisonment

DENVER --  The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado today announces that Jorge Loya-Ramirez was sentenced to life imprisonment for his role in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine throughout northern Colorado and southwestern Kansas.  The sentence was pronounced by United States District Judge, Robert E. Blackburn, in United States v. Amaya, et al, 15-cr-272-REB, on March 6, 2018.  Loya-Ramirez was indicted by a grand jury on June 23, 2015, as part of a 28 person drug conspiracy operating in Colorado, California, and Kansas.  He was the last remaining defendant in the case to be tried before a jury, and he was convicted on August 23, 2017, for distribution and possession with the intent to distribute methamphetamine, as well as the drug conspiracy. 

At trial, the evidence showed Loya-Ramirez was the leader of a methamphetamine syndicate and used a team of employees to distribute hundreds of pounds of methamphetamine.  To facilitate drug distribution, Loya-Ramirez used violence, intimidation and deadly weapons.  When he was stopped near Lamar, Colorado, in May, 2015, he had over a kilogram of cocaine and just under a half-pound of methamphetamine in his possession.  

“Poison and pain are what this defendant cultivated in Colorado,” said U.S. Attorney, Bob Troyer.  “Thanks to the FBI, Colorado State Patrol, many other law enforcement partners, and our tireless prosecution team, this dope dealer’s day is done.”

“This investigation illustrates the FBI’s commitment to work with its partners to address violent crime,” said FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Calvin Shivers. “We extend our gratitude to our law enforcement partners and prosecutors for dismantling this drug trafficking organization and bringing charges forward.”

Loya-Ramirez is the last of the defendants to be sentenced in the case, closing out a multi-year investigation and the prosecution of a large-scale drug trafficking operation in the Denver metropolitan area and beyond.  The United States Attorney’s Office Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force prosecuted this case.  Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation, with assistance from other agencies working at the Metro Gang Task Force and the Colorado State Patrol.

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