Massive drug bust helps keep deadly narcotics off Weld County streets
A Denver man will serve 48 years in prison following one of Colorado’s largest fentanyl seizures—an operation that prevented a devastating influx of illegal drugs into Northern Colorado communities.
In March 2024, Colorado State Patrol troopers stopped 41-year-old Miguel Gutierrez-Heredia near Fruita in Mesa County for speeding at 93 mph in a 75 mph zone. The traffic stop, however, turned out to be a pivotal moment in a larger drug trafficking investigation targeting Northern Colorado.
Authorities had been tracking Gutierrez-Heredia as part of a multi-agency operation. Investigators concluded that he had recently traveled to California to collect large quantities of narcotics intended for distribution across Denver and Northern Colorado…