Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Man Advertised Illicit Drugs on Social Media. Now He's Headed to Prison.
Bill McEwen updated website photo 2024
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 3 years ago on
April 18, 2022

Share

 

Jose Jesus Torres Garcia used his social media account to drum up sales for his illicit drug business.

Now, after federal agents got wind of his advertising, the 30-year-old Fresno man is headed to prison for six years on drug and gun charges.

U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced the prison term in a news release after Torres Garcia’s sentencing Monday by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd.

According to court documents, in May 2021, law enforcement saw that Torres Garcia was using his social media account to advertise “M30” pills, which are counterfeit oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl. Officers executed a search warrant at Torres Garcia’s residence and found a loaded, short-barrel rifle and several hundred fentanyl pills packaged for sale.

Torres Garcia pleaded guilty on Sept. 27, 2021.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin J. Gilio prosecuted the case.

Mexican National Gets 63 Months in Prison

In another case Monday, Jesus Adrian Pena-Gamez, 33, a Mexican national illegally living in Bakersfield, was sentenced to five years, three months in prison for fentanyl trafficking.

According to court documents, on April 7, 2021, Pena-Gamez and co-defendant Carlos Ivan Campana met in a Bakersfield restaurant parking lot to sell 15,000 counterfeit M30 pills containing fentanyl. During the meeting, Pena-Gamez and Campana were arrested and officers recovered about 3 pounds of pills with fentanyl from Pena-Gamez’s vehicle.

Charges are pending against Campana, whose whereabouts are unknown after he violated his pretrial release conditions, the Department of Justice said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher D. Baker is prosecuting the case.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

UP NEXT

Sanger Police Seek Public’s Help to Find Missing Teen

Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

Inside Trump’s Extraordinary Turnaround on Immigration Raids

5 hours ago

Trump Approval Steady at 42%, Support Weakens for His Immigration Policy, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

6 hours ago

Madera County Wildfire Prompts Evacuation Warnings, Road Closures

A wildfire burning near Raymond Road and Avenue 16 in Madera County has prompted evacuation warnings and road closures, authorities said Mon...

4 hours ago

A wildfire near Raymond Road and Avenue 16 in Madera County has prompted evacuation warnings and road closures as officials urge residents to prepare to leave if threatened on Monday, June 16, 2025. (Madera County SO)
4 hours ago

Madera County Wildfire Prompts Evacuation Warnings, Road Closures

Sanger police are searching for Kaylani Thompson, 17, who went missing Saturday, June 14, 2025, after leaving her home and was last seen getting into a white sedan. (Sanger PD)
4 hours ago

Sanger Police Seek Public’s Help to Find Missing Teen

A view of the cityscape in the aftermath of Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, June 16, 2025. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
4 hours ago

Trump Says Everyone Should Immediately Evacuate Tehran

5 hours ago

Inside Trump’s Extraordinary Turnaround on Immigration Raids

President Donald Trump speaks at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
6 hours ago

Trump Approval Steady at 42%, Support Weakens for His Immigration Policy, Reuters/Ipsos Poll Finds

A person was rescued from a Fresno canal Monday, June 16, 2025, near Dakota and Ninth Street, marking the third such incident in recent days, officials said. (Fresno FD)
6 hours ago

Person Rescued from Fresno Canal, Third Incident in Recent Days

6 hours ago

Arias Dodges Questions About His False Fresno ICE Raid Claim

8 hours ago

Iranian State TV Halts Live Broadcast After Israeli Strike

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend