Vargas said he’s an American citizen but has lived in Mexico the past 10 years, according to the federal complaint written by a Drug Enforcement Agency task force officer. Vargas said he’s made six or seven previous trips to Dayton and usually carries between 50 and 60 heroin-filled containers and gets paid $6 per gram, the complaint states. Vargas told agents that the 71 pellets weighing 900 grams — nearly two pounds — was the most he’d ever swallowed.
After receiving a tip that a drug courier may be staying at the Dayton Motor Motel at 1639 N. Keowee St., agents observed Vargas leave his room Aug. 3 to go to the La Michoacana Market at 748 Troy St., the complaint states.
When Vargas returned, agents said they knocked on his door and he allowed them to enter. Police officers from Dayton and Springfield observed sandwich bags and plastic grocery bags. The DEA agent wrote that he found a trash can that was covered in feces and that it was likely that Vargas defecated outside of the toilet to recover the heroin pellets.
Officers found one clear plastic container in the toilet tank that field tested positive for heroin. They later seized 70 heroin pellets from Vargas.
Originally, Vargas said he was living in southern California and that he was in Dayton to visit a friend, but could not name the friend. Using law enforcement databases, the officers discovered Vargas crossed the Mexican border on foot at San Ysidro, Cal. on Aug. 1.
Vargas, who told officers he’s fluent in English, agreed to let them search the room and his two cell phones. He said his actions were coordinated by phone from individuals in Mexico. Vargas was placed into custody and told officers he’d traveled by plane to Indianapolis and took a taxi to Dayton.
According to the complaint, Vargas said he still had one heroin pellet in his body. He was taken to Grandview Medical Center to pass the pellet and then booked into the Montgomery County Jail. Vargas has a preliminary hearing scheduled for Aug. 18.
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