Jorge Steve Zepeda Irias, the former manager of a Haymarket farm and Salvadoran-type restaurant raided by law enforcement earlier this year, has pleaded guilty to felony charges tied to an alleged firearm and drug trafficking operation, according to the Prince William Times.
Zepeda, the former manager of Rancho Los Cerritos, pleaded guilty May 1 to four felony counts, including firearm trafficking and drug distribution, according to court documents cited by the outlet.
He is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 8. Court records cited by the Prince William Times show he faces a maximum term of life in prison.
The report cited a plea agreement in which Zepeda admitted he conspired to sell 47 firearms to a confidential source working with the FBI as part of an undercover investigation from July 2024 to January 2026.
The plea agreement said the guns included pistols, rifles, shotguns, AK-47-style weapons, AR-15-style weapons, “ghost guns,” and at least two stolen guns.
The deal also said Zepeda admitted to selling guns to other people.
According to the plea agreement, Zepeda told the confidential source he sold five guns a week to members of MS-13, a.k.a. Mara Salvatrucha, for a total of more than 100 guns under the plea deal.
In the plea agreement, Zepeda also admitted that during that time he conspired to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine.
On January 21, Dozens of FBI agents and Prince William County police officers raided Rancho Los Cerritos, a Salvadoran-style eatery and 38-acre ranch. The property is located off U.S. 15 between Dominion Valley Country Club and Waterfall Road.
The report said the search included draining ponds on the property. The FBI did not release details about the finding of significant items. The FBI Washington Field Office said it offered no new information to share in an email to the Prince William Times on May 15.
Zepeda ran farming and livestock operations at Rancho Los Cerritos, including the sale of meat, poultry, and vegetables, the outlet reported, citing court records. He also helped run an open-air pavilion restaurant on the grounds.
Zepeda was arrested in 2013 by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is currently facing removal proceedings, according to court records obtained by Prince William Times. He appealed his order of removal and sought permanent resident status. The impact of his conviction and pending sentence on his immigration status was not clear.
Prosecutors say Zepeda conspired with his wife, Jenifer Icela Romero Fabian, and his boss at the ranch, Juan Francisco Enriquez Cerritos Sr. The couple has leased the property since 2009.
Romero Fabian faces four counts related to the selling of guns and drugs, court documents cited by the outlet said. Cerritos is charged with illegal dealing in firearms.
Following her arrest in late January, Romero Fabian was briefly released from detention. She was re-arrested and remains in detention as she did not hand over her passport, the report said. She purchased a ticket for a flight from Dulles International Airport to El Salvador on Feb. 23.
Her trial is pending and scheduled for Aug. 24. Cerritos is also being held without bond and is scheduled to go to trial the same day, court records show.
The case also led to the arrests of others linked to Rancho Los Cerritos as well as to suspected drug sales in Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C., the Prince William Times reported.
The defendants are Jorge Manuel Romero, Oscar Raquel Cuellar Macua, Evelyn Esmerelda Villatoro, Oscar Vladimir Padilla Portilla, and Damon Darnell Gray.
Portilla, Gray, and Villatoro recently pleaded guilty. The remaining other defendants are scheduled for jury trials on Aug. 24, the report said.
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