Arizona Woman Pleads Guilty to Federal Heroin Trafficking Charges in New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE – Fabiola Soriano-Tlapanco, 26, of Phoenix, Ariz., pleaded guilty today to heroin trafficking charges in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., under a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Soriano Tlapanco and co-defendant Annais Moreno, 34, also of Phoenix, were arrested in May 2015, on a criminal complaint charging them with conspiracy and possession of heroin with intent to distribute after DEA agents allegedly found almost four kilograms of heroin concealed in their baggage during an interdiction investigation at the Greyhound Bus Station in Albuquerque, on May 16, 2015.   The duo were indicted on the same charges on June 9, 2015.

During today’s proceedings, Soriano-Tlapanco pled guilty to a felony information charging her with possession of heroin with intent to distribute.  Soriano-Tlapanco admitted that on May 16, 2015, she and Moreno were to be paid to transport approximately 3.95 kilograms of heroin from Glendale, Ariz. to Denver, Colo., when they were stopped by law enforcement officers while traveling through Albuquerque on the Greyhound Bus. 

On Oct. 26, 2015, Moreno pled guilty to a felony information charging her with possession of heroin with intent to distribute.  Moreno admitted that on May 16, 2015, she and Soriano-Tlapanco transported 3.95 kilograms of heroin while traveling through Albuquerque on the Greyhound Bus.  Moreno further admitted that she was transporting the heroin from Glendale, Ariz. to Denver, Colo. 

At sentencing, Soriano-Tlapanco and Moreno each face a statutory maximum of 20 years in federal prison.  Both women remain in custody pending sentencing hearings which have yet to be scheduled.

This case was investigated by the Interdiction Unit of the DEA’s Albuquerque office which focuses on disrupting the flow of narcotics, weapons, and the proceeds of illegal activities as they are smuggled into or through New Mexico in passenger buses, passenger trains, commercial vehicles and automobiles.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly A. Brawley is prosecuting the case.

This case is being prosecuted pursuant to the New Mexico Heroin and Opioid Prevention and Education (HOPE) Initiative.  The HOPE Initiative is a collaborative effort between the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center that is partnering with the Bernalillo County Opioid Accountability Initiative with the overriding goal of reducing the number of opioid-related deaths in the District of New Mexico.  The HOPE Initiative comprised of five components:  (1) prevention and education; (2) treatment; (3) law enforcement; (4) reentry; and (5) strategic planning.  The law enforcement component of the HOPE Initiative is led by the Organized Crime Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the DEA in conjunction with their federal, state, local and tribal law enforcement partners.  Targeting members of major heroin trafficking organizations for investigation and prosecution is a priority of the HOPE Initiative.