Bryan O’Neil Yambao Arce was arrested last April for bringing meth into Juneau, and is currently serving a three-year sentence for the crime.
According to a grand jury, it wasn’t an isolated incident. A grand jury indicted Arce last Wednesday on one charge of drug conspiracy, and Arce was arraigned Monday in federal U.S. District Court on the charge. U.S. Magistrate Judge Leslie Longenbaugh scheduled Arce’s trial at 9 a.m. May 29.
The indictment alleges that Arce, 39, conspired with others to distribute methamphetamine and heroin in Alaska and elsewhere. It alleges that Arce, who also goes by Eugenio Arreloa, was involved in this distribution at least during the span of Dec. 10, 2015 to April 14, 2017.
The indictment did not name others, or say whether co-conspirators were from Juneau or elsewhere. In the past, the Empire has reported that Arce said he does not live in Juneau.
On April 14, 2017, Arce was stopped at Juneau International Airport coming off a flight from Seattle, according to a criminal complaint at the time. Juneau Police Department Detective Carl Lundquist wrote in the complaint that a JPD K-9 dog picked up a scent from Arce’s bag and JPD found 216 grams of a white crystalline substance that tested positive for meth.
In May 2017, Arce pleaded guilty to second-degree drug misconduct, a class B felony, in the case. In October, Superior Court Judge Phillip Pallenberg sentenced Arce to three years in prison, with 18 months suspended.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack Schmidt said that 2017 charge is only a part of the new case.
“We have a larger scope of the investigation rather than just the one incident that occurred there,” Schmidt said in an interview.
The maximum sentence, as Schmidt said in court Monday, is life in prison and up to $10 million fine. The mandatory minimum, Schmidt said, is 10 years in prison. The severity of the sentence is partially determined by a defendant’s previous convictions, and Schmidt pointed out prior a prior conviction of felony fraud in California and multiple charges of drug possession.
Federal Assistant Public Defender Jamie McGrady will represent Arce, it was determined Monday. Schmidt estimated the trial will take three or four days, and Longenbaugh concurred.
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• Contact reporter Alex McCarthy at 523-2271 or amccarthy@juneauempire.com. Follow him on Twitter at @akmccarthy.
