Stephen Paul Barton mugshot (Courtesy of Smith County)

Two men and two women have been indicted on federal drug charges stemming from a seven-month investigation by federal, state and Smith County law enforcement officials, according to a news release from the Smith County Sheriff’s Office. 

Angelica Jaimes-Loredo, 30, and Suri Rivera-Zuniga, 24, both of Houston, were arrested Aug. 17. Kevin Russ Ivy, 57, of Whitehouse, was arrested on Sept. 25 and Stephen Paul Barton, 54, of Tyler, was arrested on Oct. 24. 

Ivy, Jaimes-Loredo, Rivera-Zuniga and Barton knowingly and intentionally possessed with the intent to distribute and distributed 50 grams or more of methamphetamine beginning about January 2018 and continuing until at least Aug. 18, 2018, according to the six count indictment obtained from the public access to court electronic records online database. 

In addition to the drug charges, Ivy and Barton also were indicted on a federal firearms violation. 

The indictment said Ivy knowingly and unlawfully possessed a .22 caliber revolver and Barton possessed a .22 caliber rifle.  

The rifle Barton was in possession of was not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, according to the indictment. 

Ivy, Jaimes-Loredo, Rivera-Zuniga and Barton face a sentence of five years to life in prison, a fine of up to $20,000, or both and a term of supervised release of at least 10 years, according to the indictment. 

The Smith County Sheriff’s Office narcotics investigators, Texas Department of Public Safety Criminal Investigation Division and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigated the alleged drug distribution in Smith County and surrounding counties.  

Ivy, Rivera-Zuniga and Jaimes-Loredo pleaded “not guilty” to the charges last week, according to waivers of person appearance at arraignment and entry of plea of not guilty obtained from the online database. 

As of Monday, Barton had not entered a plea. 

Ivy, who goes by the aliases of Kevin Scott Ivy and Tony Lee Bell, was being held in the Smith County Jail on a federal detainer, according to jail records. 

Rivera-Zuniga, Barton and Jaimes-Loredo were held in the Smith County Jail, but transferred to other facilities where they remained held on federal detainers awaiting trial, according to jail records.

Court documents said jury selection and a trial are scheduled for Jan. 7 in the Eastern District of Texas.