A 37-year-old man was indicted on multiple federal charges after being caught three times with dealer quantities of fentanyl and other narcotics, with one encounter involving an infant who survived an opioid overdose, federal authorities announced this week.
Dennis Aguilar Huisa – who had been living at a Des Moines motel – faces four counts of possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute, one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and one count of money laundering, according to Acting U.S. Attorney Teal Luthy Miller.
Huisa was arrested multiple times in 2023 and 2024, beginning in August when Puyallup Police found approximately 1,000 fentanyl pills during a traffic stop.
On Sept. 7, officers responded to an infant overdose involving Huisa. A nine-month-old was revived with multiple doses of Narcan after testing positive for fentanyl, amphetamines, and oxycodone.
Law enforcement recovered 115 fentanyl pills and more than $16,000 in cash during that incident.
In November, Auburn Police executed a search warrant at Huisa’s Des Moines motel room and found packaged fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, and a “ghost gun” in the truck he was driving.
“This case is a stark reminder of the devastating consequences of the fentanyl epidemic,” Miller said. “It is only because of the swift actions of police and medics that a young child’s life was saved.”
Huisa made his initial appearance in federal court Monday.
Possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute is punishable by a mandatory minimum 10 years in prison and up to life in prison. Possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime is punishable by a mandatory minimum 5 years in prison and up to life in prison to run consecutive to the other sentence imposed in the case. Money laundering is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
The case is being investigated by the Puyallup and Auburn police departments and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
