California man pleads guilty to trafficking cocaine to Aliquippa

Taylor Spirito
·2 min read

A man from California pled guilty to a drug trafficking charge in relation to interstate drug trafficking to Aliquippa.

Christopher Andrew Salgado, 24, pleaded guilty to one county of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine Wednesday.

Between March and September 2022, an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force conducted an investigation into a drug trafficking organization operating in western Pennsylvania.

The investigation revealed that a cocaine supplier in California would mail parcels with kilograms of cocaine to a house in Aliquippa, the Department of Justice said.

Investigators seized a parcel with two kilograms of cocaine before it got to the house. After that, the packages were sent to Salgado, who was in West Virginia.

From there, Salgado would drive the parcel to Pittsburgh International Airport, pick up a co-defendant who would fly in from California and take them and another co-defendant to Aliquippa, the Department of Justice said.

Salgado was seen disposing a box at Pittsburgh International Airport after delivering the parcel. Investigators saw a shipping label with Salgado’s West Virginia address on the box, as well as drug packaging material inside. A field test showed the presence of cocaine in the box, the Department of Justice said.

In August 2022, investigators seized a parcel sent from California to Salgado in West Virginia. It had around two kilograms of cocaine inside.

Investigators conducted a search warrant of Salgado’s residence and found another parcel with two kilograms of cocaine, a loaded 9mm handgun, an empty pistol magazine, a box of ammunition and a digital scale.

Salgado’s sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 14. He faces a total sentence of up to 40 years in prison, a fine of $5 million or both.

Salgado remains in custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

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