BEAUMONT, Texas – A Houston man has pleaded guilty to drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.

Jorge Sayon, Jr., 38, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess 400 grams or more of fentanyl today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Zack Hawthorn.

“Fentanyl is among the deadliest drugs that America has ever encountered.  Even a small dosage can greatly increase the user’s chance of overdose or death.  Simply put, there is no safe amount of fentanyl,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.  “Taking these drugs off the street undoubtedly saved lives, and we are grateful to our law enforcement partners for their continued vigilance.”

According to information presented in court, since at least May 2017, Ruben Flores Pulido, Ivan Castano-Aguirre, and Javier Hernandez, supervised, managed and controlled a drug trafficking organization of more than five people that distributed cocaine and fentanyl and laundered narcotics proceeds in Houston, Texas, Southeast Texas, Atlanta, Georgia, Chicago, Illinois, and Monterrey, Mexico.

On June 26, 2018, agents intercepted a call where Flores told Castano-Aguirre that Jorge Sayon had picked up illegal narcotics and was traveling back to Houston.  Agents relayed this information to Texas DPS who were able to locate the Sayon traveling southbound on Interstate 45 through Montgomery County.  During a subsequent traffic stop of Sayon, DPS Troopers located two bags that contained approximately 2 kilograms of cocaine and 16.5 kilograms of fentanyl, 11.5 kilograms of which were in pill form.

Sayon was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 3, 2020.  He faces up to life in federal prison.  The maximum statutory sentence prescribed by Congress is provided here for information purposes, as the sentencing will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors.  A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the U.S. Probation Office.

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 https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

This case is being investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Rapp.