Drug Dealer Caught with More Than 1 Kilogram of Fentanyl Who Continued Selling Drugs After Absconding Sentenced to Eight Year Prison Term

SAN FRANCISCO - Cristian Diaz-Villatoro was sentenced yesterday to eight years in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, as well as possession with intent to distribute and distribution of methamphetamine. U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer handed down the sentence.

Diaz-Villatoro, 33, a national of Honduras, was indicted by a federal grand jury on October 18, 2022. Diaz-Villatoro pleaded guilty on December 10, 2025, to all counts charged in the indictment, including possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine.

According to court documents, Diaz-Villatoro sold a Marin County undercover detective several ounces of methamphetamine on multiple occasions in July and August 2022. During that time period, cell phone location information showed Diaz-Villatoro would regularly travel from his residence in Oakland to the open-air drug markets in the Tenderloin in San Francisco, where he would remain for six-hour periods at night. In September 2022, Diaz-Villatoro was arrested and a search of the defendant's car led to the seizure of more than 1,000 grams of fentanyl and more than 200 grams of methamphetamine, along with large amounts of heroin, cocaine, and a digital scale, as depicted below:

After he was indicted by a federal grand jury, Diaz-Villatoro was ordered released on bond. He then fled from the Northern District of California and was a fugitive for approximately 10 months. In May 2024, Diaz-Villatoro was arrested by Oregon State Police with one third of a pound of fentanyl in his car, which he said he was transporting to Portland. Cell phones belonging to Diaz-Villatoro that were seized at the time of his arrest in Oregon contained communications showing him repeatedly coordinating sales of fentanyl and other unknown narcotics while he was a fugitive.

United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Bob P. Beris made the announcement.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Breyer also sentenced the defendant to a five-year period of supervised release once his prison term is completed. The defendant was immediately remanded into custody.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared S. Buszin is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Tina Rosenbaum and Kevin Costello. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the DEA, with assistance from the Marin County Sheriff's Office.