Eight defendants sentenced to prison for their roles in a cocaine and firearms trafficking conspiracy

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Salvadoran national Juan Francisco Enriquez Cerritos Sr., 54, was sentenced to two years and six months in prison for conspiracy to deal firearms without a license. Enriquez Cerritos is the last of eight defendants to be sentenced in this Homeland Security Task Force case.

According to court documents, from July 2024 to January 2026, Enriquez Cerritos; Jorge Steve Zepeda Irias, 43, an illegal alien from Honduras; and Jenifer Icela Romero Fabian, 25, a lawful permanent resident from El Salvador, sold dozens of firearms from the Haymarket ranch leased by Enriquez Cerritos as well as from the Chantilly residence shared by Zepeda and Romero Fabian. The Haymarket ranch was managed by Zepeda. None of the conspirators are licensed to sell firearms.

Additionally, Zepeda and Romero Fabian as well as Oscar Raquel Cuellar Macua, 49, an illegal alien from El Salvador, and Evelyn Esmeralda Villatoro, 32, of Silver Spring, Maryland, travelled to various locations, including Washington, to obtain cocaine from, among others, co-conspirators Jorge Manuel Romero, 36, of Beltsville, Maryland; Oscar Vladimir Padilla Portillo, 32, of Bowie, Maryland; and Damon Darnell Gray, 36, of Washington.

Law enforcement conducted a series of controlled purchases of 47 firearms and multiple kilograms of cocaine from the conspirators. During a controlled purchase of firearms and cocaine on May 12, 2025, at the Chantilly residence, Zepeda fired a firearm into the ground and pointed a second firearm at another individual. On Jan. 21, 2026, law enforcement conducted controlled purchases of over a dozen firearms and four kilograms cocaine from the conspirators and then simultaneously executed search warrants at multiple locations across Washington and northern Virginia as part of this investigation.

Padilla Portillo pled guilty on April 29 to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and was sentenced on Sept. 8 to seven years and six months in prison.

Zepeda pled guilty on May 1 to conspiracy to deal in firearms without a license, conspiracy to distribute cocaine, possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and using, carrying, and brandishing of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. He was sentenced on Sept. 8 to 10 years and 10 months in prison.

Gray pled guilty on May 1 to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and was sentenced on Sept. 8 to 10 years in prison.

Villatoro pled guilty on May 11 to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and was sentenced on Sept. 15 to two years in prison.

Romero Fabian pled guilty on May 26 to conspiracy to deal in firearms without a license and conspiracy to distribute cocaine. She was sentenced on Sept. 15 to three years and four months in prison.

Romero pled guilty on May 29 to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and was sentenced on Sept. 1 to 12 years and seven months in prison.

Cuellar Macua pled guilty on July 7 to conspiracy to distribute cocaine and was sentenced on Oct. 6 to five years and ten months in prison.

Enriquez Cerritos pled guilty on July 21 to conspiracy to deal in firearms without a license. He was sentenced on Oct. 27 to two years and six months in prison.

Theophani K. Stamos, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Jeffrey L. Tyler, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal Division, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Patterson and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicholas Bolzman prosecuted the case with assistance from Assistant U.S. Attorney Nihar Mohanty the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia.

This case 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 Washington, D.C., comprises agents and officers from the FBI; Homeland Security Investigations; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Drug Enforcement Administration; Diplomatic Security Service; U.S. Marshals Service; U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service; Naval Criminal Investigative Service; Transportation Security Administration Federal Air Marshals Service; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Enforcement and Removal Operations; and Washington Baltimore HIDTA, with the prosecution being led by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.

The Prince William County Police Department assisted in the investigation.

Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District CourtLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACERLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link. by searching for Case No. 1:26-cr-35.