A U.S. Army soldier assigned to the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson was indicted on charges related to drug dealing this week. Staff Sgt. Juan Gabriel Orona-Rodriguez was charged with multiple counts including possession of, distribution of, and conspiracy to distribute cocaine. The charges come days after “approximately” 17 active-duty service members, including Orona-Rodriguez, were arrested during a law enforcement raid at an underground nightclub.
The soldier was indicted this week. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Orona-Rodriguez was working security at the underground nightclub Warike in Colorado Springs, where Fort Carson is located, when it was raided April 27 by law enforcement agents, including members of the Drug Enforcement Agency.
The raid, first reported by local media last week, found several soldiers assigned to Fort Carson either working security at the nightclub or there as patrons. Colorado Public Radio reported that more than people were detained. The military members were turned over to the Army, the DEA said. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the raid on Warike was targeting both drug trafficking and undocumented immigrants in the United States.
As of press time, Orona-Rodriguez, 28, is the only soldier arrested in the raid to have been charged by federal prosecutors. The federal investigation into the staff sergeant alleges months of drug trafficking activity, going back to as early as September 2024. Court documents note that his text messages obtained by investigators show him messaging people about selling cocaine, including transferring it at the nightclub.
At the time of the raid, Orona-Rodriguez was working for a security company that was employing active-duty members of and veterans of the U.S. military.
“Orona-Rodriguez appears to hold a leadership role in a business called Immortal Security LLC, which provides armed security at ‘nightclubs’ – including an afterhours, unlawful nightclub called Warike – within Colorado Springs, Colorado,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office release on his arrest said. “On numerous occasions, the Colorado Springs Police Department received 911 calls related to Warike citing a wide variety of alleged crimes, including weapons violations, assault, narcotics, and other violent crime.”
As part of the investigation, an undercover agent purchased cocaine from Orona-Rodriguez outside his home on April 22. Five days later the raid on the nightclub happened.
The affidavit from an FBI agent noted that Orona-Rodriguez’s involvement in the security company was known by his commanding officer, who told him in March that activity was not allowed. The commander specifically told him “…you are prohibited in engaging in off-duty employment without the approval of the Battalion Commander IAW 4ID…” Despite that, he remained involved, as he was working security the night of the raid.”
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the raid was carried out by hundreds of law enforcement agents, including members of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the FBI.