(COLORADO) — The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado confirmed that the Fort Carson soldier who was arrested on Wednesday evening, April 30, was tied back to the illegal nightclub that the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Rocky Mountain Field Division (DEA RMFD) busted on Sunday, April 27.
28-year-old Staff Sergeant Juan Gabriel Orona-Rodriguez is accused of distribution and possession with intent to distribute cocaine and conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
“According to the criminal complaint, Orona-Rodriguez, while serving as an active-duty U.S. Army soldier, unlawfully distributed controlled substances,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office press release read.
At the time of the arrest, Orona-Rodriguez had served almost nine years in the Army and is currently assigned to the 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, according to a Fort Carson official.
According to the criminal complaint obtained by FOX21 News, Orona-Rodriguez allegedly sold cocaine to an undercover DEA agent and “…historical text message communications outline months of suspected cocaine trafficking.”
Orona-Rodriguez is also suspected of unlawfully trafficking firearms, “including those with high-capacity magazines, to illegal aliens,” according to court records.
The complaint further explained that Orona-Rodriguez appeared to hold a “leadership/ownership role” in a business called Immortal Security LLC.
“This security company provides armed security at “nightclubs” – including an after-hours, unlawful nightclub called Warike — within Colorado Springs, Colorado,” the complaint read. “Warike was the site of a federal search warrant that was executed and led by the DEA on April 27, 2025.”
During the operation, more than 100 people who entered the U.S. illegally were taken into custody, and “Orona-Rodriguez was one of approximately 17 active-duty U.S. Army service members present at Warike during the execution of that search warrant,” according to court documents. The complaint also claimed that Immortal Security LLC employs some active duty and former U.S. Military service members.
“DEA agents with whom I have spoken believe employees of Immortal Security are
involved in drug distribution, and that employees of Immortal Security are carrying firearms while providing security at Warike and similar establishments,” the complaint states.
Reportedly, according to court documents, Orona-Rodriguez had received a “developmental counseling form” from his commanding officer in Spring of 2025, and was told at that time, “…that Immortal Security Operation LLC is off limits to members of the Armed Forces,” and specifically in March 2025 that “…you are prohibited in engaging in off-duty employment without the approval of the Battalion Commander IAW 4ID…”
According to the complaint, a court-authorized search warrant of Orona-Rodriguez’s phone between at least Sept. 16, 2024, and mid-April 2025 show text messages which “…appear to concern the distribution of drugs,” and Orona-Rodriguez “…voluntarily reaching out to his suppliers to obtain distribution quantities of cocaine and then redistributing that cocaine to others.”
Court documents further detail that, “On or about the week of April 21, 2025, the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) conducted a controlled purchase of cocaine from Orona-Rodriguez… Among others, a DEA undercover was witness to the purchase.”
According to arrest documents, investigators also recovered texts on Orona-Rodriguez’s cell phone “…related to the unlawful sale of firearms.”
According to the FBI, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Rocky Mountain Field Division (DEA RMFD), the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID), and officials at Fort Carson participated and assisted in the investigation and “facilitated the arrest” of Orona-Rodriguez on April 30.
“We are aware the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of Army CID, took a Fort Carson Soldier into custody,” a Fort Carson official said. “We will continue to cooperate with all agencies involved.”
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado, “The investigation is being conducted by the Denver Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and DEA’s Colorado Springs Resident Office. The prosecution is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Houlihan.”
