Homeland Security Task Force investigation leads to prison sentence for member of Kansas City drug trafficking ring tied to Mexico

KANSAS CITY, KAN. - A Kansas man was sentenced to 167 months in prison for his role in a transnational drug trafficking organization with ties to a Mexican cartel. The sentence follows a Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) investigation which has so far led to convictions of approximately a dozen defendants.

According to court documents, Joel Rodriguez, 30, of Kansas City, Kansas, pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.

In February 2023, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) began investigating a drug trafficking ring in the Kansas City metro area headed by Jose Antonio Heredia-Chang. Heredia-Chang, 34, is an illegal alien from Sinaloa, Mexico, who had been living in Phoenix, Arizona. The trafficking ring distributed methamphetamine, fentanyl, cocaine, and other narcotics. ATF and DEA investigators determined that buyers/distributors in Kansas City placed orders with Heredia-Chang then he dispatched drivers to deliver the narcotics.

Investigators observed Heredia-Chang's drivers visiting the home of Joel Rodriguez in Kansas City, Kansas. Agents intercepted calls between Rodriguez and Heredia-Chang discussing drug and firearms trafficking in which Rodriguez provided Heredia-Chang his home address for delivery. Agents observed subsequent deliveries to Rodriguez's house.

After Heredia-Chang's arrest in September 2023, evidence extracted from his phones showed photographs of firearms and messages about firearm purchases. Further evidence proved Heredia-Chang was collaborating with individuals in Sinaloa, Mexico, to acquire and transport methamphetamine, fentanyl, and heroin, and that Heredia-Chang operated other distribution bases in Seattle, Washington, and Denver, Colorado.

In November 2025, Heredia-Chang pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He is awaiting sentencing.

"The Heredia-Chang drug trafficking ring was a complex and highly structured operation based on a model that in essence worked the same as if you ordered a pizza. Instead of food, these delivery drivers showed up at your doorstep with meth and cocaine," said U.S. Attorney Ryan A. Kriegshauser. "We are fortunate our federal agencies have the investigative skills and tools to root out these networks. Our skilled prosecutors are committed to convincing judges that these perpetrators should serve time behind bars."

"This defendant helped move meth for the Heredia-Chang trafficking network and discussed firearms trafficking with the man who ran it," said Special Agent in Charge Bernard "Butch" Hansen of the ATF Kansas City Field Division. "Firearms are the currency that keeps these drug networks running, and ATF will follow that trade wherever it leads. Now he will spend nearly 14 years in federal prison. The investigation is not over. ATF will continue to stand with our partners to hold violent offenders accountable."

"One-by-one, our agents and those of ATF are dismantling Mexican-sourced drug trafficking organizations responsible for pushing poisons into our midwestern communities," DEA St. Louis Field Division Acting Special Agent in Charge Colin Dickey said. "This investigation is a tremendous example of federal agencies working together to bring the full force of the law against violent poly-drug traffickers who use threats and intimidation to maintain control. Fentanyl, methamphetamine and cocaine have no place on our streets, and the DEA will continue to take down the organizations threading their way into the heartland."

So far, 10 other co-defendants have pleaded guilty to federal charges in connection with the Heredia-Chang drug trafficking network. They include Noel Rios-Salazar, Jesus Villaverde, Jose Cervantes-Valenzuela, Jessica Solano, Gennelle Glackin, Kelly Gray, Marnie Lynn, Christopher Martens, Robert Hicks, and Chad Haviland.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Faiza Alhambra prosecuted the case.

This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Kansas City comprises agents and officers from FBI; Drug Enforcement Administration; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Marshals Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Division with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Kansas.

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