Daniel Quinones-Castro has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to drug and weapon charges.

A long-term investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration began in September 2018 when the agency initiated an examination of a drug-trafficking organization, according to a release from the Arizona Attorney General’s Office.

Law enforcement determined Quinones-Castro was involved in illegal drug transactions in the Phoenix area. Investigators conducted surveillance on several transactions and noted Quinones-Castro was coordinating the deals by directing couriers to obtain and distribute dangerous narcotic drugs, the release stated. 

Between September 2018 and February 2019, investigators determined that Quinones-Castro assisted in trafficking more than seven pounds of methamphetamine and more than seven pounds of cocaine.

Investigators also seized a belt-fed rifle that Quinones-Castro directed an associate to purchase so that it could be smuggled into Mexico, authorities said. 

His co-conspirators, Mark Lujan and Daniel Granucci, were both sentenced to supervised probation for their part in conspiring with Quinones-Castro to sell methamphetamine and launder the proceeds, authorities said, adding Quinones-Castro was sentenced on Aug. 20.

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