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Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
Eastern District of California

For Immediate Release

Tuesday, August 24, 2021
Phillip A. Talbert
, United States Attorney

Anaheim Man Pleads Guilty to Drug Conspiracy in Stanislaus and San Joaquin Counties

FRESNO, Calif. — Jose Reyes-Pineda, 48, of Anaheim, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to distribute methamphetamine, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, Reyes and co-defendants Genaro Serrato-Calles, 51, and Antonio Valencia-Hernandez, 65, both of Modesto, and Antonio Castellanos, 38, of Whittier, were charged with conspiring over a two-year period to distribute drugs in Stanislaus and San Joaquin Counties. As part of the drug conspiracy, Reyes delivered over 11 pounds of methamphetamine to Valencia for distribution in Modesto.

Reyes is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Nov. 15, 2021. Castellanos, Serrato, and Valencia previously pleaded guilty. Castellanos is scheduled for sentencing on Oct. 18, 2021, and Serrato and Valencia are both scheduled for sentencing on Nov. 8, 2021. Each defendant faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10 million. The actual sentences, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Homeland Security Investigations; the Central Valley High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) task force; the San Joaquin County Metropolitan Narcotics Task Force; the Stanislaus Drug Enforcement Agency; and the Orange County Sheriff’s Special Investigations Bureau. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen Escobar and Melanie Alsworth are prosecuting the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

San Francisco Field Division