CLEVELAND — The U.S. Department of Justice has announced that Ronald Rendon-Luna, a Mexican national residing in Painesville, was sentenced to prison for more than 12 years after pleading guilty for his role in a drug trafficking conspiracy involving fentanyl and cocaine.
The 37-year-old Rendon-Luna was sentenced to 151 months in prison following his guilty plea on charges of engaging in a drug-trafficking conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances and being an alien in possession of firearms. He was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release.
Court documents reveal that the FBI Cleveland Division's Cartel, Gangs, Narcotics and Laundering Task Force conducted "a long-term drug-trafficking investigation" that resulted in the arrest and successful prosecution of Rendon-Luna and three other co-conspirators, including two individuals with direct connections to the Sinaloa Cartel based in Culiacán, Mexico.
Investigators discovered that from June 2022 through January 2023, conspiracy leader Nefer Ojeda-Elenes conspired with Rendon-Luna "to use residences in Cleveland and Painesville, and two storage units in Cleveland and Middleburg Heights, to store illegal drugs and proceeds from the sales of the illegal substances." Rendon-Luna was also found to have traveled to area hotels to meet co-conspirator Cameron Harris of Dayton, who distributed drugs in that area.
Officials add that a fourth individual, Trino Alexander Briceno-Matheus, 31, of Miami Beach, Florida, "also participated in the conspiracy and is known to have met with Rendon-Luna at an area hotel to pick up approximately $149,640 in proceeds earned from illegal drug activities."
In all, officials say the organization was responsible for distributing approximately 244 pounds of fentanyl and nearly 100 pounds of cocaine during the course of the conspiracy.
"During a federal search warrant executed at the related residences and storage units, law enforcement officials found illegal drugs in a storage unit, and confiscated several weapons, including an AK-47 and an AR-15 from Rendon-Luna’s Painesville home," the Justice Department added in its release.
“These criminals used their Mexican Cartel connections to bring millions of doses of fentanyl—each one potentially fatal—into our communities and distribute those poisons across our State,” said U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio Rebecca Lutzko in a statement. “Every day, dangerous drugs like the fentanyl and cocaine that these defendants imported and peddled on our streets destroy lives. Those who seek to expand their illegal drug trade to our District should know that we will use all tools available to stop them from endangering our residents’ lives and the safety of our neighborhoods.”
Rendon-Luna's co-conspirators were previously sentenced to the following, per the DOJ:
Ojeda-Elenes was sentenced Sept. 17, 2024, to 228 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. He was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release.
Harris was sentenced Aug. 20, 2024, to 151 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute a controlled substance. He was also ordered to serve five years of supervised release.
Briceno-Matheus was sentenced July 23, 2024, to 30 months in prison and three years of supervised release after pleading guilty to conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and interstate transportation in aid of racketeering.
