The FBI arrested an Army infantryman stationed at Fort Carson on federal cocaine distribution charges Wednesday evening.
The arrest comes four days after a federal raid early Sunday on an underground Colorado Springs nightclub that authorities said resulted in more than a 100 people detained on immigration charges.
According to a federal criminal complaint, Juan Gabriel Orona-Rodriguez, an Army staff sergeant, appears to have an “ownership/leadership role” in a company called Immortal Security, which provided security for nightclubs, including Warike, the underground nightclub raided on Sunday.
According to the affidavit, the case picks up pace in March, when Orona-Rodriguez’s superior officer learns he is running the side security business and tells him to stop unless he has approval. The business apparently kept operating, employing several other soldiers.
Authorities were able to get a search warrant for Orona-Rodriguez’s text messages and assembled several conversations he had they allege were related to dealing in cocaine and a gun.
Orona-Rodriguez was one of 17 active-duty soldiers present at the time of the Sunday raid.
“So you need a whole full and the 7 g right?” reads one message to Orona-Rodriguez from an unnamed contact — and Orona-Rodriguez responds, “Yeah I do just split in half lol”
The criminal complaint says that in drug transactions, controlled substances are often referred to by weight. “In this light, I understand that, when ORONA-RODRIGUEZ refers to ‘two half’ he is referring to two half ounces, which I know to be a common measurement of cocaine,” reads the complaint.
In other messages, the unnamed person offers to deliver an ounce of cocaine to the Warike, the underground nightclub that was raided. Many of the amounts outlined in the criminal complaint deal with relatively small amounts of cocaine, two ounces and less.
Colorado Springs Police were aware of the club having generated "numerous" 9-1-1 calls, alleging weapons violations, narcotics and other violent crimes.
The text messages indicate Orona-Rodriguez was both a buyer and seller of cocaine at different times, the complaint charges. At one point a customer messages Orona-Rodriguez to purchase a half ounce “likely at Warike” where he was providing security for $500. The customer tries to negotiate to $450, and Orona-Rodriguez writes back “Your [sic] killing me smalls,” according to the complaint.
On April 21, an undercover DEA agent purchased half an ounce of cocaine from Orona-Rodriguez near his residence in Colorado Springs.
Other text messages from Sept. 2024 outline proposed firearms transactions with people without legal status to be in the U.S. including pistols with extended clip magazines. It’s unclear from the criminal complaint if the transactions were completed. The purchaser was trying to pay with cash and cocaine, which Orona-Rodriguez indicated would not work, he could only accept cash, according to the complaint.
Orona-Rodriguez is expected in federal court Thursday afternoon for a hearing on the charges.
The raid on Warike was a joint effort by local and federal agencies, and in a post on social media, U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi said the underground club was frequented by “Tda and MS-13 terrorists,” referencing South and Central American gangs.
Authorities said cocaine and methamphetamine were seized, but have released scant details. The paperwork in Orona-Rodriguez’s case is the most thorough accounting yet made public. He, so far, appears to be the only person facing charges from the Sunday raid, though scores were taken into immigration detention.
Orona-Rodriguez is assigned to the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division. He’s been in the service for nearly nine years.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
| This story is part of a collection tracking the impacts of President Donald Trump’s second administration on the lives of everyday Coloradans. Since taking office, Trump has overhauled nearly every aspect of the federal government; journalists from CPR News, KRCC and Denverite are staying on top of what that means for you. Read more here. |
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