Members of a Mexican cartel-linked drug trafficking ring, including an illegal alien with a deportation order, are now behind bars and the operation has been dismantled, thanks to FDLE and Customs and Border Protection.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) arrested three individuals connected to a transnational drug trafficking organization operating on behalf of a Mexican cartel.
37-year-old Emilio Garnica, 76-year-old John Lewis Crismon Jr. and 67-year-old Jose Luis Solorio-Ruiz were each charged with one count of conspiracy to traffic heroin and one count of trafficking heroin. Solorio-Ruiz is an illegal alien from Mexico with a standing deportation order.
The investigation began in April 2025 when FDLE agents received information that a drug trafficking organization was working throughout the United States on behalf of a Mexican cartel.
The investigation revealed that Solorio-Ruiz, Crismon Jr. and Garnica worked with members of the drug trafficking organization to import over two pounds of black tar heroin and methamphetamine from Mexico into the U.S. as part of a sophisticated operation spanning several states, including California, Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida.
Garnica was arrested by FDLE agents and was transported to the Sarasota County Jail. Crismon Jr. was arrested by agents and was transported to the Duval County Jail in Jacksonville. FDLE worked with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to arrest Solorio-Ruiz in Orange County, California.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier’s Office of Statewide Prosecution is prosecuting the case.
The investigation remains active, according to law enforcement.
