MISSOULA — A California man indicted in a large drug conspiracy with ties to the Sinaloa Cartel pleaded guilty on Monday to allegations he brought methamphetamine and other drugs to Butte for redistribution, according to U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich.
Raymond Perez Ramos, 31, of Long Beach, California, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute meth on Monday, April 15, 2024, after law enforcement reportedly seized more than 12 pounds of the drug from his vehicle.
A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Montana states that from around October 2019 to November 2020 in Butte, Ramos and co-defendant Travis Bridger Soderberg were in possession of meth with the intent to distribute.
Soderberg previously received an eight-year prison sentence for his conviction in the case.
The release states that in August 2020, Ramos asked others if they had “work” for him; agents reportedly interpreted “work” to mean transporting meth. Ramos was told “work” was available but that he needed to keep quiet about “whatever we got going on,” according to the release.
Ramos transported 12.5 pounds of meth, or the equivalent of approximately 5,600 doses, to Montana for re-distribution in November 2020. The release states that law enforcement seized his vehicle and found the meth hidden inside one of the vehicle's doors.
Ramos's case stems from a multi-agency undercover investigation into a large-scale, Butte-based drug trafficking organization with Sinaloa Cartel ties that has resulted in the federal convictions of 22 other people.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Kathleen L. DeSoto presided over the trial, and Ramos's sentencing is set for Aug. 14 before U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen.
Ramos faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years to life in prison, a $10 million fine, and at least five years of supervised release.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan G. Weldon is prosecuting the case that was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Montana Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Montana Highway Patrol, the Southwest Montana Drug Task Force, Butte-Silver Bow Law Enforcement, and the Butte-Silver Bow County Attorney’s Office assisted in the investigation.
