CALDWELL -- Eight members of the Norteño gang were have been indicted on drug and weapons charges in Canyon County.
The charges come as part of "Operation Red Dawn," a coordinated investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the United States Marshals Service; the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations; the Idaho Department of Corrections Office of Probation and Parole; the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office; the Nampa City Police Department; the Caldwell City Police Department and the Boise City Police Department.
Investigators served a total of seven search warrants and seized weapons, drugs, cash and gang paraphernalia, according to the Canyon County Prosecutor's Office.
Five suspects were indicted on state charges; the other three face charges in federal court.
Seven of the eight members have been arrested and are currently in custody. The eighth suspect, identified as 29-year-old Israel Montiel of Nampa, remains at large.
Montiel was indicted on one count of delivery of cocaine with a gang enhancement, and faces a possible life sentence. The other suspects, and their charges are listed below:
Brian Orozco, 26, of Parma: one count of supplying a firearm to a gang, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm with a felon with a gang enhancement. Orozco faces a maximum of 20 years.
Adan Jasso-Lopez, 25, of Nampa: three counts of delivery of marijuana, one count of delivery of coacine with gang enhancements. Jasso-Lopez faces a maximum of life
Albert Estrada, 31, of Nampa: two counts of delivery of cocaine, with gang enhancements. Estrada faces a maximum of life.
Monroe Martinez, 30, of Nampa: one count of supplying a firearm to a gang, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm with a felon with a gang enhancement, two counts of delivery of marijuana with gang enhancements. Martinez faces a maximum of 40 years.
Peter Albert Rodriguez, 27, of Nampa: two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm. Rodriguez faces a maximum of 20 years.
Fabian Gonzalez, 26, of Caldwell: unlawful dealing in firearms and possession of an unregistered firearm. Gonzalez faces a maximum of 15 years.
Roy Benitez, 25, of Caldwell: possession of an unregistered firearm. Benitez faces a maximum of 10 years.
Anyone with information about Montiel's whereabouts is urged to contact law enforcement.
"Canyon County will not tolerate criminal gangs in our communities," Prosecutor Brian Taylor said in a release. "By bringing in drugs, guns and violence, gangs destroy the very fabric of what we want our county to be. This is another message to gangs to stay out of our County."
The indictments came just two months after another major Treasure Valley operation that saw 20 members and associates of the Sureno Mob Trece gang charged. Authorities predicted at the time that the arrests would "effectively dismantle" the gang, a subset of the larger Sureño gang and a rival of the Norteños.
Nampa Police Chief Joe Huff praised the collaboration between agencies that led to the latest takedown.
"The partnership and cooperative efforts between the federal law enforcement and local enforcement is exceptional," he said in a release. "Criminal gangs should realize that we will work cooperatively and tirelessly to eradicate them. They are not welcome in Nampa or anywhere in Canyon County."
