Suspected fentanyl trafficker arrested in Phoenix and sentenced

PHOENIX — A man was sentenced to seven years in prison after pleading guilty to fentanyl-related crimes, the The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona announced this Friday.

Angel Valencia-Avendano, 20, of Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico, was initially arrested in Phoenix in March 2023 and charged with trafficking fentanyl, authorities said.

Prior to the arrest, investigators were conducting surveillance near 78th Avenue and McDowell Road. They then stopped Valencia-Avendano for a traffic violation and searched his vehicle.

In a sports bag, investigators found approximately 27 kilograms of fentanyl, the equivalent of approximately 280,000 pills. When they later searched his apartment, they found a handgun, three more kilograms of fentanyl, drug records and $83,500 in cash.

The weapon and money were handed over to American authorities.

Assistant United States Attorney Ryan McCarthy prosecuted the case, and Chief U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow handled sentencing last week, for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

“As far as the amount of fentanyl that's coming across the border, it's just unbelievable the amount that's coming in,” Maricopa County District Attorney Rachel Mitchell said. KTAR News 92.3 FM earlier this month as part of Fentanyl Awareness Day.

“The amounts are skyrocketing, and … fentanyl drives other criminal behavior – either violence or property crimes to support that habit – and it's so easy to obtain,” Mitchell added.

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