Sisters Man Arrested for Fentanyl and Methamphetamine Trafficking

Central Oregon Drug Enforcement (CODE)

On November 11, 2022, at approximately 9:30 AM, the Central Oregon Drug Enforcement Team concluded a short-term investigation with the arrest of Paul Weston, age 46, of Sisters, Oregon. 

After receiving several community complaints, CODE detectives identified Mr. Weston as a fentanyl trafficker in the Sisters, Oregon area. The initial investigation alleges Mr. Weston imported fentanyl pills from the Portland area into central Oregon, where he distributes them.

After an overnight surveillance operation in the Portland area, CODE Detectives applied for, obtained, and executed a search warrant. At approximately 9:30 AM, Mr. Weston was contacted during a traffic stop on Highway 20 west, near milepost 96, while driving a 2021 Dodge Ram pick-up towing a dump trailer. 

CODE Detectives and DCSO Deputies gathered and seized a commercial quantity of fake pharmaceutical tablets made of fentanyl and a separate package of methamphetamine. At the same time, it was also determined that Weston was driving under the influence of a controlled substance. 

A “commercial quantity” is defined by statute as five grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl or any substituted derivative of fentanyl as defined by the rules of the Oregon Board of Pharmacy. This is not a separate criminal charge but rather an increase in the sentencing guidelines. 

The greater Portland area is a central transshipment hub where illegal drugs from the southwest border are stored in local warehouses, storage units, and residential properties. The bulk shipments of drugs are usually broken down into smaller quantities and transported to other states or distributed to local dealers. In addition, the Portland area has an international airport, interstate highways, and bus and train lines that make it easy for shipments to be smuggled to other destinations around the pacific northwest.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 107,000 people have died due to a drug overdose or poisoning in the US. Criminal drug networks in Mexico are mass-producing illicit fentanyl and fake pills pressed with fentanyl in filthy, clandestine, unregulated labs. These fake pills are designed to look like real prescription pills based on size, shape, color, and stamping. These fake pills typically replicate real prescription opioid medications such as oxycodone (Oxycontin®, Percocet®), hydrocodone (Vicodin®), and alprazolam (Xanax®); or stimulants like amphetamines (Adderall®).

Mr. Weston was lodged in the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Jail with the following criminal charges.

DUII - Drugs

Unlawful Possession of a Schedule II Controlled Substance (Fentanyl) 

Unlawful Possession of Methamphetamine

CONTACT FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:   Sgt. Kent Vander Kamp, 541-550-4869 or kentv@deschutes.org 

The Central Oregon Drug Enforcement (CODE) team is a multi-jurisdictional narcotics task force supported by the Oregon-Idaho High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program and the following Central Oregon law enforcement agencies:  Bend Police Department, Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office, Redmond Police Department,  Prineville Police Department, Crook County Sheriff’s Office, Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, Madras Police Department, Oregon State Police, Sunriver Police Department, Black Butte Police Department, United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Warm Springs Tribal Police Department, Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson County District Attorney’s, and the Oregon National Guard.

The Oregon-Idaho HIDTA program is an Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) sponsored counterdrug grant program that coordinates and provides funding resources to multi-agency drug enforcement task forces to disrupt or dismantle local, multi-state and international drug trafficking organizations.