Evergreen Reporter

Amanda Rachelle Miller, 33, of Tucson, was apprehended in Culiacán, Sinaloa, Mexico and deported to the United States on May 30, 2024, to face three felony indictments in the District of Arizona. Miller is a U.S. citizen and had been a fugitive for approximately three-and-a-half years at the time of her arrest in Mexico. Miller made her initial court appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Jacqueline Rateau on July 3, 2024, and was ordered detained in custody.

Federal agents first encountered Miller in late 2020 at the culmination of an investigation into narcotics distribution occurring out of various Tucson-area motels. As alleged in court filings, on November 12, 2020, agents conducted a final enforcement operation at a downtown Tucson motel and apprehended Miller as she ran from the scene. In one of the rooms, agents discovered evidence of Miller’s involvement in drug trafficking, including quantities of suspected methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl; a vacuum-sealing device; a digital scale; over $25,000 in cash; and two suspected drug distribution ledgers, one of which had Miller’s first name written on the back cover. Miller was charged in federal court by complaint on November 13, 2020 and later indicted on December 1, 2021. She absconded after being placed on pre-trial release and fled to Mexico.

In late September 2021, an undercover officer posing as a bulk purchaser of narcotics established contact with Miller over social media. Miller was using the alias “Reina Sur,” or “Queen of the South.” As alleged in court documents, Miller represented to the undercover officer that she was “direct from [the] [S]inaloa [C]artel.” Over the ensuing months while communicating with the undercover officer, she is alleged to have orchestrated multiple narcotics sales which revealed the network of criminal associates conducting business on her behalf in southern Arizona. During their investigation, agents also linked Miller through recorded communications to two historical drug seizures in April and August 2021.

Miller has been indicted in three federal criminal cases in the District of Arizona:

In case number 21-CR-03072-TUC-SHR: Conspiracy to Possess with Intent to Distribute Heroin and Methamphetamine; Possession with Intent to Distribute Heroin and Methamphetamine related to an incident allegedly occurring on November 12, 2020.

In case number 21-CR-02360-TUC-JGZ: Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine; Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine related to drug transactions allegedly occurring in April and August 2021 while Miller was a fugitive.

In case number 22-CR-02454-TUC-RCC: Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl, Methamphetamine, Cocaine, Heroin and Marijuana; Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl and Methamphetamine; Conspiracy to Launder Monetary Instruments; Money Laundering related to drug transactions and money laundering activity allegedly occurring from September 2021 through end of year while she remained a fugitive.

The maximum penalties for these charges range from twenty years imprisonment up to life imprisonment along with fines ranging from $500 thousand up $10 million dollars.

An indictment is simply a method by which a person is charged with criminal activity without inferring guilt—an individual remains presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt by jury evidence presented during trial proceedings.

This prosecution forms part Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation program aimed identifying disrupting dismantling highest-level traffickers launderers gangs transnational organizations threatening United States utilizing prosecutor-led intelligence-driven multi-agency approach leveraging strengths federal state local enforcement agencies against networks

Bureau Alcohol Tobacco Firearms Explosives Drug Enforcement Administration Homeland Security Investigations US Marshals Service US Postal Service Office Inspector General Arizona Department Public Safety conducting investigation this case Assistant Attorneys Michael R Lizano Ashley Culver David Petermann District handling prosecution