Local organization was fueled by suppliers in Mexico
HARRISBURG — Attorney General Dave Sunday, in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and local police departments, announced the takedown of a Lehigh County-based drug trafficking organization that utilized suppliers in Mexico to traffic fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine in multiple Pennsylvania counties.
This week, the Office of Attorney General filed charges against ten people for their roles — including the leader of the organization, 40-year-old Joaquin “Kino” Gonzalez. Arrests were made in recent days. Allentown Police Department assisted in Gonzalez’s arrest over the weekend.
Each defendant is charged with corrupt organizations, possession with intent to deliver, conspiracy, and related offenses.
The collaborative investigation began in 2024 and involved searches at numerous locations and seizures of large quantities of narcotics.
Investigators determined Gonzalez had a connection in Southern California, where a Mexican trafficking organization supplied him with drugs for distribution in Pennsylvania.
“This was a high-level, cross-country operation that polluted neighborhoods across the eastern part of the Commonwealth with deadly poisons,” Attorney General Sunday said. “Closing down drug-trafficking pipelines remains a top priority for my office, as these traffickers value dollars over human lives, and we have seen, time and time again, the deadly violence attached to drug trafficking groups.”
The defendants charged are:
- Joaquin Gonzalez, 40, of Emmaus
- Danny Cancel, 25, of Bethlehem
- Joel Castro, 41, of Orefield
- Sally Garcia-Colon, 39, of Emmaus
- Jorge Marrero-Rodriguez, 60, of Allentown
- Jordan Pagan, 37, of Leola
- John Pagan DeJesus, 49, of Whitehall
- Israel Perez, 45, of Bethlehem
- Anthony Planas, 42, of Bethlehem
- Hanzel Rivera, 37, of Bethlehem
Gonzalez’s bail was set at $1 million. The nine other defendants are also in custody. Preliminary hearings are scheduled for May 12.
In 2024, investigators observed Gonzalez deliver six pounds of methamphetamine to Pagan. Additionally, investigators discovered approximately four pounds of methamphetamine, seven pounds of marijuana, and $2,500 in cash during a traffic stop involving Rivera.
During searches, investigators seized:
- 5 pounds of fentanyl
- 7 pounds of heroin
- 3,000 fentanyl pills
- 48 pounds of methamphetamine
- 6 pounds of cocaine
- 2 pounds of marijuana
This case is being prosecuted by Senior Deputy Attorney General Christie Bonesch of the Drug Strike Force Section. Criminal charges, and any discussion thereof, are merely allegations and all defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
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