9/21/2022 8:33 PM. The Southern California seizure occurred on Oct. 2 and included 893 pounds of cocaine, 13 pounds of heroin and 2,200 pounds of methamphetamine. Stephanie Lai was a 2020 intern for the Los Angeles Times. Alarmed, a construction worker called the cops, whosent a bomb squad. Federal agents announced what they called the largest methamphetamine bust in U.S. history Wednesday . Two years before that, Riverside resident Hiram Granados Alvarez was sentenced to 27 years in prison for attempting to ship 220 pounds of cocaine to a drug ring in Baltimore. Cocaine and meth were being distributed throughout the region from the location, which investigators identified in September, according to the DEA. They either head north on Highway 86, into the eastern portions of the Coachella Valley, or head west to the I-15, which runs north towards Temecula, Corona and Riverside. "When someone is on supervised release, the expectation is that they will refrain from committing further crimes," said Diaz. The arrests were announced during a news conference in Riverside Wednesday morning, where authorities said violent crime has risen dramatically during the pandemic. CALIFORNIA, USA Federal agents announced what they called the largest methamphetamine bust in U.S. history Wednesday, displaying a 10-foot high pile of . "The significant seizures thwarted drug traffickers' plans to profit from these dangerous drugs that cause incredible harm to our communities," Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian Rabbitt said. Even if Sinaloas dont move the drugs themselves, they tax any other cartel that ships narcotics through their territory, like a smuggling tollbooth. Updated: 10:31 PM PDT October 14, 2020 CALIFORNIA, USA Federal agents announced what they called the largest methamphetamine bust in U.S. history Wednesday, displaying a 10-foot high pile of. Troopers championed the case as the biggest meth bust in the history of Arkansas, but the truck had come from Riverside County. Like in Riverside, drug seizures along that stretch of border have gone up dramatically. All rights reserved. Justice officials fear nation's biggest wiretap operation may not be legal. Traditionally, L.A. is the transportation hub, he said, noting that the city is north of many immigration checkpoints and is home to four airports, numerous freeways and countless package distribution centers. No charges have yet been filed in the latest seizures, although authorities said cases would likely be prosecuted in both California and Washington, D.C. Todays seizure sends a message loud and clear, Shea said Wednesday. Andres Jesus Morales, 30, and Christine Ponce, 27, were charged with four drug-related felonies with the intent to sell a controlled substance, the Riverside . Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Authorities specifically mentioned two incidents of alleged drug smuggling along the southern border. Feds Bust Up Inland Empire Drug-Trafficking Ring . The DEAs Timothy Shea, left, and Bill Bodner stand next to a pyramid comprised of 2,224 pounds of methamphetamine, 893 pounds of cocaine and 13 pounds of heroin. However, another federal agency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, netted an even bigger amount of meth the following week. Well let me hang up.. Authorities said the Oct. 2 take, which involved two locations, in Moreno Valley and Perris, represents the largest domestic seizure of the narcotic in the agencys history. 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. Smugglers will try every way possible to try and get their product across the border; and because of the partnership between CBP, Homeland Security investigations and DEA, this significant seizure occurred and we stopped them, said Anne Maricich, acting CBP director of field operations in San Diego. The drugs were intended for distribution in Southern California, including Los Angeles, according to DEA officials, who displayed the haul at the agency's warehouse in an undisclosed location in Los Angeles County. We dont fish.. Travel Safely and Make it to the Table for the Thanksgiving Holiday. DEA officials say the smuggled narcotics flow from Mexicos Sinaloa Cartel through Riverside County stash houses en route to sellers markets in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and Canada. Empty the trash in the bathroom. Man Accused Of Dumping Dog At Riverside County Cell Tower Arrested, Fill Up And Get A Fatburger To Go: Beyond Food Mart Coming To Beaumont, Big Bear Bald Eagles Lay First Egg of 2023. The Riverside County District Attorneys Office has pointed to this bust as an example of the importance of local wiretaps, but the case also shows how drug trafficking has changed in this region. Redding felon's drug sales arrest marks second drug bust in 11 days - Woman also arrested . The department said members of its DEA task force has been on the trail of the massive drug ring with ties to the Sinaloa drug cartel since June. Her husband ran out the back door, vanishing into the desert. MORENO VALLEY (CBSLA) - Deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department seized over a thousand marijuana plants from an illegal grow house in Moreno Valley on Friday. "The total seized drugs have an estimated street value of $33 million.". The DEA's bust was just one of two massive meth seizures by federal authorities in October. Thats why traffickers prefer to get the drugs here.. 11/22/2022 1:58 PM. The drugs were intended for distribution throughout the region, investigators said. Seized heroin has been mostly white powder, rather than black tar, and officials believe these shipments are intended for East Coast markets, where white powder heroin is more popular. DEA Acting Administrator Timothy J. Shea and other law enforcement officials displayed theevidence during a press conference at a DEA warehouse in Montebello. "This is enough dope to prove a dose of meth for every man, woman and child in the United States and Mexico," DEA Acting Administrator Timothy Shea said. "The defendants were able to smuggle the drugs across the border during COVID, when it was more difficult to do.". The US Customers and Border Protection on Oct. 9 recovered 3,014 pounds of the drug from a truck. October 14, 2020 / 10:20 PM Industrial-sized labs moved to Mexico, where American laws are meaningless, and cartels now smuggle their product to their customer base in the U.S. Superficially,the shift has made Riverside County safer. All you really need is a big garage and a garage door opener, Moore said. Enter address: This website, like most media sites, uses small files called cookies to anonymously customize the advertising that you see. Klikk Administrer innstillinger for mer informasjon og for administrere valgene dine. His identity was not provided. Copyright 2023 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved. The loose dirt turned easy. Narcotics detectives with the Fontana Police Department spotted the exchange. More than 70 investigators worked the two California cases, which included extensive fieldwork and surveillance. A nearly two-ton seizure of methamphetamine in Norco was the largest meth seizure documented by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's Los Angeles Division, it was announced today. 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Authorities said the Oct. 2 take,. It gradually destroys the body and mind of people who use it, and eventually it kills them.. Riverside County has become the single largest drug trafficking distribution center in the United States, built on a web of highways, nondescriptsuburbia and empty desert, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. Finn ut mer om hvordan vi bruker informasjonen din i retningslinjene for personvern og retningslinjene for informasjonskapsler. Download the News Channel 3 app here. Two duffel bags replete with narcotics allegedly changed hands. Massino, the DEA spokesman, insisted that everyday citizens would almost never have their conversations intercepted. Twenty-five duffel bags loaded with cocaine, heroin and meth were seized, according to the DEA. Authorities arrested eight defendants Thursday named in a federal grand jury indictment alleging their involvement in a drug trafficking organization operating in Los Angeles and Riverside. Ved klikke Godta alt godtar du at Yahoo og vre partnere vil behandle din personlige informasjon og bruke teknologier som informasjonskapsler, for vise personlig tilpassede annonser og innhold, for annonse- og innholdsmling, publikumsinnsikt og produktutvikling. Just last month, authorities arrested another Moreno Valley truck driver, Ricardo Benitez-Serrano, a fugitive who had been caught hauling $2.9 million in suspected drug profits in 2013 and 305 pounds of cocaine in 2014. 1/15/2023 Moore, Ezekiel Age: 34 Sex: M Arrest Date\Time: 1/15/2023 4:48:00 AM Case Number: 13-004901 PARMELE ST Rockford, IL 61104 Arrest Location: Rockford, IL Jeff Moore, the former narcotics prosecutor, compared the countys drug trafficking network to the San Bruno natural gas pipeline. "The bulk shipments of drugs are usually broken down into smaller quantities and transported to other states or distributed to local dealers.". Online Volunteer Info Session- Learn How to Advocate for Youth in Foster Care! The DEA said it represented the single "largest seizure" of meth that the agency's Los Angeles personnel had ever made. The scope is enormous here, and then spreads through to everywhere, said a Coachella Valley DEA agent, who asked not to be identified to preserve his undercover work. Fifteen years ago, men like Beltran would have been cooking meth, not smuggling it. On Oct. 9, U.S. Customs and Border Protection stopped a truck crossing from Mexico into the United States at San Diego's Otay Mesa and found 3,014 pounds (1,367.1 kilograms) of methamphetamine, the agency said Sunday. To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com. Agents from Southwest Border Group 2 began investigating a large-scale drug trafficking organization with ties to the Sinaloa Cartel in San Diego's Otay Mesa area, allegedly involved in the transportation and delivery of large quantities of drugs. Read more. The list of chores had been a code get the hiding places ready. That pipeline begins south of the border, in a region of Mexico controlled by the Sinaloa cartel. USA TODAY reporter Brad Heath can be reached at bheath@usatoday.com or on Twitter @bradheath. One of the suspects was on active parole for attempted murder. The truck driver, a 47year-old Mexican citizen, was arrested and turned over the custody of the joint investigative team from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The amounts we are seeing are unfortunately on the rise, but we're also seizing more, getting more of this poison off the streets.. In April, Arkansas State Police found 275 poundsof meth worth an estimated $10 million hidden in a semi-truck on Interstate 40, about 10 miles east of Little Rock. As trafficking has expandedin Riverside County, so have efforts to stop it. "This massive seizure likely saved lives and prevented the Sinaloa Cartel from doing business and profiting on the lives of people in our communities.". (Video), Easter, Passover Services In Banning, Beaumont, Riverside County: 2022. Authorities said the Oct. 2 take, which involved two locations, in Moreno Valley and Perris, represents the largest domestic seizure of the narcotic in the agency's history. The driver was Javier Leon-Garcia, 53, a Moreno Valley resident who police say drove the drugs cross-country before being snagged. "I can't bear to think about families coming here and shopping and knowing this is going on," Tanya Rivas, another shopper, said. Be the first to know when news breaks in Coachella Valley. According to the DEA, an investigation into transportation and supply of illegal drugs flowing into the country from south of the border focused on the Sinaloa cartel, which has been operating in the Otay Mesa area. 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