Major drug trafficking ring takedown in Pennsylvania leads to 10 arrests, officials say

Ten people are facing charges following the takedown of a major Pennsylvania-based drug trafficking ring, authorities said. 

In a news release, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General said the 10 people are tied to a drug trafficking organization based in Lehigh County that used suppliers in Mexico to traffic fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine in multiple counties in Pennsylvania.

The leader of the organization, 40-year-old Joaquin "Kino" Gonzalez of Emmaus, was arrested over the weekend, officials said. Investigators said he was bringing drugs to Pennsylvania from Mexico using a connection in Southern California. 

The news release said the state Office of Attorney General, FBI and local police began investigating the drug trafficking ring in 2024, and the investigation "involved searches at numerous locations and seizures of large quantities of narcotics." During the searches, the AG's office said 5 pounds of fentanyl, 7 pounds of heroin, 3,000 fentanyl pills, 48 pounds of methamphetamine, 6 pounds of cocaine and 2 pounds of marijuana were seized. 

"This was a high-level, cross-country operation that polluted neighborhoods across the eastern part of the Commonwealth with deadly poisons," Attorney General Dave Sunday said in the news release. "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 10 people charged are 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; and Gonzalez.

According to the news release, each is charged with corrupt organizations, possession with intent to deliver, conspiracy and related offenses.