NEVADA – A Nevada man charged in a methamphetamine trafficking plot has been extradited from Mexico to the U.S., federal officials said Thursday.
Nassrollah Behmard, also known as “Benny” and “Michael Holt,” was charged with methamphetamine possession and trafficking in June.
According to the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Nevada, Behmard, 64, was detained in Mexico on a federal warrant. He appeared in court for the first time in California on Tuesday after being deported to the United States.
Prosecutors said Behmard fled to Mexico in 2014 to escape being arrested in connection with a drug trafficking investigation in the Reno region.
While in Mexico, FBI agents discovered that he was still plotting with other suspects in Reno and Los Angeles to distribute more than 140 pounds of meth this year.
Prosecutors claim that Behmard arranged for the delivery of 100 pounds of meth from Los Angeles to Reno, but that it was intercepted and tracked back to a hidden facility in the Los Angeles region.
Prosecutors said the lab was disassembled, and agents collected nearly 1,000 pounds of meth.
In June, a federal grand jury indicted Behmard and alleged co-conspirators Owen Eugene Dick, 58, Melissa Ann Longo, 46, Ramon Guadalupe Sanchez Maldonado, 51, and Jesus Sanchez Vargas, 22. The remaining suspects were apprehended in July.
Prosecutors said Behmard faces at least 10 years in jail if convicted and could be sentenced to life behind bars. His next court appearance is set on December 27.
Credits: Fox Reno
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