GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – Criminal charges were filed Monday against multiple people who allegedly were part of a large-scale drug ring in Brown County.
Those charged Monday include: Alexis McMillan, Alejandro Lopez, Terry Johnson, Kendra Fish, and Brenda Delossantos-Avila.
The balance of initial court appearances by multiple suspects, including alleged ringleader Ruben Ortiz, is expected Monday.
At this time, the complaints have been sealed from public view by a judge due to the use of wiretaps.
Twenty-nine people were arrested last month as part of what prosecutors said was the distribution of cocaine, heroin, marijuana, mushrooms, and other drugs.
At a court hearing June 19, Desmond Jordan was described as a high-level figure in the drug enterprise.
Six charges were filed against him on Monday, including manufacture and delivery of heroin, designer drugs, and marijuana counts.
The probable cause portion of the complaint, where prosecutors detail the allegations and evidence in the case, has been sealed by an order signed by Brown County Judge William Atkinson.
Assistant District Attorney Amy Pautzke requests in the application for the order to seal the complaint that “none of the content of the Probable Cause section of the Criminal Complaint referencing any information directly obtained from intercepted wire communications or any information derived from the contents of the intercepted wire communications be publicly revealed by any party to the criminal action unless and until the order is modified or the seal is lifted by the court.”
Additionally, it “asks the court to balance the public’s interest in access against the individual’s privacy interests and any legitimate needs of law enforcement,” citing the Wisconsin Electronic Surveillance Control Law as the basis.
Due to the judge’s order, the defendants themselves are not provided with copies of the documents law enforcement used to apply and get permission to use electronic surveillance.
There is no expiration date on the order of how long the documents will be shielded from the public.
An investigation into the ring started in the summer of 2017.
