CLEVELAND — U.S. law enforcement officials said Tuesday they stopped a pipeline that allegedly brought 1,100 pounds of cocaine from Mexico to the Cleveland area.
Officials from the Drug Enforcement Agency and U.S. Attorneys’ Office announced three people have been charged in drug trafficking charges.
Authorities arrested Christopher Ficklin and Robert Atkinson in the Cleveland area Tuesday with a third suspect, David Gomez-Orrantio, arrested at the U.S. and Mexico border on March 11. The trio faces 30 criminal counts combined, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Ohio Northern District Michelle M. Baeppler said.
Baeppler said the group is accused of using vehicles with hidden compartments to avoid detection.
Overall, law enforcement officials estimate around $13 million was trafficked back to Mexico.
