A 57-year-old man, Vincent Benny Peraza, has been sentenced in Yavapai County Superior Court to 18 Years in the Arizona Department of Corrections for Involving or using a Minor in a Drug Offense, and The Sale or Transportation of Narcotic Drugs.
Peraza used a 7-year-old child to conceal a backpack containing approximately 23,000 fentanyl pills.
On July 13, 2021, a Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office deputy conducted a lawful traffic stop on a vehicle near Cordes Junction. Peraza was a passenger in the car, seated in the back next to a 7-year-old child.
As the occupants exited, the small child was seen holding a backpack. The child told deputies that Peraza had given him the backpack to hold.
Inside the backpack, deputies discovered approximately 23,000 fentanyl pills, a deadly quantity of the powerful synthetic opioid. Because even minimal exposure to fentanyl can be fatal, Peraza’s actions placed the child in imminent danger of death or serious injury.
Further investigation revealed Peraza had been enlisted to facilitate a drug transaction. He was given the backpack and a cellphone, instructed to wait at a nearby gas station for further instruction, and promised $1,000 for his involvement.
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