On January 19, 2023, at approximately 5:00 P.M., an Oregon State Police Senior Trooper stopped an SUV for a lane use violation on northbound US 97 near milepost 132, just north of Bend. During the traffic stop, the Trooper noticed signs of criminal activity, and a consent search of the vehicle was conducted. During a search of the vehicle, the Trooper located approximately 10 pounds of suspected methamphetamine and approximately five pounds of suspected powder fentanyl concealed within the vehicle. The K-9 assisted in the investigation by alerting the Trooper to the odor of controlled substances in the location where the drugs were hidden. The driver was identified as Dania Marbella Banegas-Ramos (28) of Oakland, California. Banegas-Ramos was taken into custody and lodged in the Deschutes County Jail for various drug offenses. OSP Troopers were assisted during the investigation by Detectives from the OSP-Criminal Investigations Division-Drug Enforcement Section (Domestic Highway Enforcement Initiative), Special Agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration – Bend Task Force, and the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office. The Oregon State Police-Domestic Highway Enforcement Initiative is supported by the Oregon-Idaho High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA). The Oregon-Idaho HIDTA program is an Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) sponsored counterdrug grant program that coordinates with and provides funding resources to multi-agency drug enforcement initiatives, including the OSP-DHE Initiative.
