Caldwell Man Sentenced for Federal Drug Crimes

BOISE – Roberto Joe Miguel Serpa, 39, of Caldwell, was sentenced this week for his role in two federal drug crimes, announced U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis.  Serpa was sentenced on April 16, 2019 to 126 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release.  Serpa was sentenced by U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill.

On May 8, 2018, Serpa, and five others were indicted by a federal grand jury for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl.  Serpa was later charged with an additional count for possessing with the intent to distribute over fifty grams of pure methamphetamine, which carried a ten-year mandatory minimum sentence.  On January 11, 2019, Serpa entered guilty pleas to both charges.  The other five codefendants also pleaded guilty and were sentenced.  Jose Luis Gonzales, 40, of Twin Falls, pleaded guilty to distributing over fifty grams of pure methamphetamine.  He was sentenced on February 26, 2019 to ten years in prison followed by five years of supervised release.  David Lee Martell, 47, of Nampa, pleaded guilty to possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute.  Martell was sentenced on February 27, 2019 to 54 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.  Russell Anthony Antonucci, 50, of Boise, was sentenced on January 31, 2019 to 42 months in federal prison for conspiring to distribute methamphetamine.  Daniel Allen Gonzales, 45, of Boise, was sentenced on April 16, 2019 to over 11 months and given credit for time served for using a telephone to facilitate a drug distribution offense.  Edouard Gribkoff, 37, of Ontario, Oregon, was sentenced on April 10, 2019 to over 8 months in prison and given credit for time served for possessing heroin.

According to court records, the investigation began when investigators received authorization to intercept the communications of Serpa and others regarding drug distribution.  Those intercepted communications showed that Serpa and others were conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl.  Serpa was arrested in April 2018, after Gonzales sold Serpa approximately three ounces of methamphetamine, which Serpa intended to distribute to others.  When Serpa was arrested, investigators found approximately 100 grams of methamphetamine, 47 grams of heroin, 12 grams of fentanyl, a digital scale, drug packaging materials, $1,951 in drug proceeds, and a Taurus 9mm pistol.  During the investigation, law enforcement agents seized and forfeited over $5,000 in drug proceeds.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Nampa Police Department.

The indictment is the result of a joint investigation by the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF).  The OCDETF program is a federal multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.  Program participants include the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Drug Enforcement Administration; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; and the U.S. Marshals Service.

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