An Arizona man who used a mobile barbershop bus as cover for a cocaine trafficking operation has been sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to attempting to transport a narcotic drug for sale.
Ismael Alejandro Ortiz was sentenced Thursday and ordered to pay $4,500 in restitution to the State Anti-Racketeering Revolving Fund, according to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office. Prosecutors say Ortiz used the converted bus to conceal and transport nearly 13 pounds of cocaine on July 29, 2025 — turning a seemingly ordinary commercial vehicle into a drug delivery operation.
The transaction was arranged through WhatsApp, a detail that Attorney General Kris Mayes highlighted in her response to the sentencing. Mayes has been vocal about what she describes as the role of major social media and messaging platforms in facilitating criminal activity in Arizona, and used Thursday’s announcement to direct the public to her office’s website, where cases involving social media-enabled crimes are tracked.
The five-year sentence adds another chapter to the attorney general’s ongoing effort to prosecute drug trafficking cases across the state.
