Deputies seize 65K fentanyl pills, 3 guns during raid off East Central

The Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office seized 65,000 fentanyl pills and three guns on Tuesday during a search of an apartment off East Central.

Richard Cortez, 44, who authorities say lived in the apartment, is charged with drug trafficking and three counts of possession of a firearm by a felon.

Michael Herrera, 18, who was inside the apartment at the time of the raid, is charged with resisting, evading or obstructing an officer for not surrendering “for over 30 minutes.”

Both men were booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center. Neither man had an attorney listed in online court records.

Court records show Cortez was sentenced to prison for drug trafficking in 2010 and for years afterward bounced between prison and probation after repeated violations.

In 2016, a BCSO deputy arrested Cortez on felony drug possession, according to court records. Cortez faced another potential prison stretch, but the case was dismissed, and Cortez was set free after the deputy didn’t show up for court.

Prosecutors filed a motion to detain Cortez until trial following Tuesday’s seizure, calling him “dangerous.”

“The defendant is a major dealer of fentanyl in the Albuquerque area,” according to the motion. “He had three firearms ready for use.”

It is unclear how Herrera is tied to the apartment where the drugs and guns were allegedly found.

Court records show Herrera has been on probation since being released from a brief prison stint in a case where he rammed a stolen car into a deputy’s vehicle in February.

Herrera has had two felony cases dismissed against him over the past year — one when witnesses didn’t show up to court and another “pending further investigation,” according to court records.

BCSO spokeswoman Jayme Gonzales said Tuesday’s drug raid was “part of an ongoing investigation linked to a recent incident where a vehicle was used in an attempt to run over a deputy from the BCSO Metro Unit.”

It is unclear if Gonzales was referring to Herrera’s prior conviction, and she did not immediately respond when asked for clarification.

In a statement, Sheriff John Allen said the drug and gun seizure was “a testament to the determination and bravery” of deputies with the BCSO Metro Unit, which was recently created to patrol the urban areas of Albuquerque.

“These deputies are not just proactive but are also unafraid to confront the challenges head-on. As we anticipate further expansion of this unit, I am confident in their continued impact in making Albuquerque a safer place for everyone,” Allen said. “Their efforts do not just stop crime; they deter it, making a clear difference throughout our community.”

A deputy on BCSO’s Metro Unit was doing surveillance on an apartment at 329 Pennsylvania NE, north of Central, and saw multiple “hand-to-hand transactions” of drugs, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court. A person “left unnamed to maintain their confidentiality” told the deputy Cortez lived at the apartment and sold drugs “to make a living.”

On Tuesday, deputies went to the apartment and used a loudspeaker to tell anyone inside to surrender, with Cortez coming out first. Deputies said after a half-hour, Herrera also came out and was detained.

Deputies searched the apartment and found the thousands of fentanyl pills inside a briefcase and three handguns, according to the complaint. Cortez told deputies the apartment was his, but “he had no idea about the pills” and the guns “did not belong to him.”

Cortez told deputies that he used “blues,” slang for fentanyl, but only picked up 25 pills at a time, the complaint states.