Efrain Estrada, a 31-year-old resident of Onalaska, Wisconsin, has been sentenced to 132 months in federal prison for fentanyl trafficking and illegal possession of firearms. The sentencing was announced by Timothy M. O’Shea, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin. Chief U.S. District Judge James D. Peterson handed down the sentence after Estrada pleaded guilty on March 13, 2025.
The investigation began on July 22, 2024, when law enforcement intercepted a package containing approximately 5,000 fentanyl pills and 3,000 methamphetamine pills mailed from Houston, Texas to La Crosse, Wisconsin. Following this discovery, agents conducted a controlled delivery after replacing the drugs with candy and arrested the individual who retrieved the package. This individual revealed that the package was intended for Estrada and agreed to assist in a controlled delivery to his residence in Onalaska.
Upon delivering the package to Estrada’s house on July 25, 2024, agents arrested him as he exited his home. A subsequent search of his residence uncovered an additional 2,800 fentanyl pills and more than 600 grams of methamphetamine along with other controlled substances. Authorities also discovered ten firearms with ammunition throughout the house; these included a short-barreled rifle and sawed-off shotguns with altered serial numbers.
Judge Peterson noted during sentencing that although Estrada inherited an established drug operation from a deceased relative, he actively embraced it rather than falling into it accidentally. “Estrada not only stepped into it but embraced it,” said Judge Peterson while highlighting that this was not merely someone else’s organization but one for which Estrada was fully accountable.
The charges resulted from investigations by multiple agencies including the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and various local law enforcement departments within Wisconsin such as La Crosse Sheriff’s Office and Madison Police Department among others. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Steven Ayala and David Reinhard prosecuted the case.
