An alleged Dallas drug trafficker who rammed his vehicle into a police car during his arrest has been charged with gun and drug crimes, announced U.S Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham.
Angel Manuel Fuentes-Melendez, 23, was indicted on Tuesday with one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and one count of possession of a firearm during a drug trafficking crime.
According to a criminal complained filed previously, in mid-April, DEA agents instructed a confidential source to negotiate the purchase of five kilograms of meth from a Mexican drug supplier he knew through the chat application WhatsApp. The Mexican drug supplier directed the source to meet a local drug supplier – later identified as Mr. Fuentes – at a parking lot on Lombardy Lane in northwest Dallas.Â
Early in the evening on April 14, teams observed Mr. Fuentes’ black Lincoln SUV exit the parking lot of a nearby apartment complex and pull up behind the source’s vehicle, which was parked in the gas station lot. The source then exited his vehicle and approached Mr. Fuentes’ vehicle to chat; while there, he observed methamphetamine in the defendant’s back seat.
Agents in covert police vehicles surrounded Mr. Fuentes’ vehicle, then activated their lights. Mr. Fuentes immediately placed the vehicle in reverse and collided with the police car behind him, which at the time was flashing red and blue. He was apprehended without further incident and transported to a police station, where he allegedly admitted that he’d been directed to deliver five kilograms of methamphetamine to the confidential source. He said he’d been receiving and delivering roughly 15 to 20 kilograms of meth per month for four to five months.
Meanwhile, agents searched an apartment where Mr. Fuentes had been staying. There, they found 33 kilograms of crystal meth stashed in the bedroom and adjoining closet and a Ruger 9mm pistol placed on top of the dresser in plain view.
Agents noted that three young toddlers were present and playing in the apartment at the time.
An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Like all defendants, Mr. Fuentes is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
If convicted, he faces up to life in federal prison.
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Field Office and the Dallas Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney L. Rachael Jones is prosecuting the case.