SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Oct. 19, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — A federal grand jury indicted two California men Wednesday on charges of bringing methamphetamine from Mexico into Utah.
Oscar Soto-Covarrubias Sr., 73, of San Diego, California, and Oscar Soto Jr., 26, of Fontana, California, were stopped by a Utah Highway Patrol trooper Oct. 7 in Salt Lake County for an expired registration, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Utah, the state’s U.S. Department of Justice prosecutor.
“During the traffic stop, a drug detection police dog alerted to narcotics,” the release said. “In a subsequent search of the vehicle, agents located and seized a backpack containing approximately 6,780 grams (15 pounds) of field-tested meth.”
As part of a drug conspiracy investigation, the DOJ said, law enforcement identified Soto-Covarrubias Sr. and Soto Jr. as a “Mexico/California-based source of supply of methamphetamine for Utah-based meth redistributors.”
Soto-Covarrubias Sr. and Soto Jr. are charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute. Their initial court appearance on the indictment is scheduled for Thursday in the Orrin G. Hatch United States District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.
The case is part of a joint investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Drug Enforcement Administration and Unified Police Department’s Metro Gang Unit, with assistance from UHP.
