A federal indictment in the Eastern District of Texas has led to the arrest of 16 individuals accused of various violations related to a widespread methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe McGlothin Jr.
The indictment, issued by a federal grand jury on April 2, 2025, in the Eastern District of Texas, includes charges related to federal drug and gun violations. A coordinated law enforcement action on April 16, 2025, resulted in these arrests. Since the investigation began in November 2022, authorities have seized over 10 kilograms of methamphetamine and 14 firearms. Those arrested began appearing in federal court on April 16, 2025, in Beaumont.
Court information alleges the involvement of the following individuals in the methamphetamine conspiracy in Angelina, Nacogdoches, and Polk counties:
Albert Lopez, 39, and Adaryl Douglas, 45, face charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Hector Gomez, 40, Oscar Padilla, 44, Leanna Jean Busby, 45, Amanda McBride, 43, John Christopher Rios, 53, Jose Pedro Guzman Jr., 34, Lorene Michelle Baker, 44, David Davis Jr., 48, Penny Ann King, 51, Jodi Calvin Sparkman, 53, Christopher Dewayne Harvey, 51, Clifton Collin-Dakota Smith, 32, and Corey Mullan, 39, are charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. Gary Mills, 65, is charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
If convicted, the defendants face sentences ranging from 10 years to life in federal prison.
Additionally, Eduardo Barajas-Macias, 32, a close associate of the criminal conspiracy, was arrested and charged with unlawful reentry by a previously removed or deported alien.
This investigation forms part of Operation Take Back America, a national initiative by the Department of Justice to combat illegal immigration and eradicate cartels and transnational criminal organizations, aiming to protect communities from violent crime. The operation integrates resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.
The case is being investigated by the Angelina County Sheriff’s Office, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, FBI, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, Lufkin Police Department, Nacogdoches County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Department of Public Safety, and U.S. Marshals Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald S. Carter is prosecuting the case.
A federal indictment is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
