Four men from Tijuana, Mexico, were arrested and charged with conspiracy to distribute the highly addictive drug in what officials described as one of the largest meth busts in San Diego County. Also seized were 893 pounds (405 kilograms) of cocaine and 13 pounds (5.9 kilograms) of heroin. The investigation led to search warrants at multiple narcotic stash houses in Moreno Valley and Perris in Riverside County, officials said. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department carried out the largest marijuana bust in its history, after seizing more than 33,000 pounds of the drug with a street value of almost $1.2 billion. March 4 (UPI) --Australian police on Saturday revealed the details of an operation that intercepted $1 billion worth of cocaine in the country's biggest-ever drug bust. Western Australia Police . Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. They worked with authorities in Arizona and it started to grow. One bill would make it a felony to possess 2 or more grams of the synthetic opioid. The eight face charges that include conspiracy to transport and distribute narcotics, firearms possession, gang enhancement and conspiracy to commit murder. A record meth bust part of a national operation was announced Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2020. Together, they worked on the five-month investigation they named Operation Black Hawk into NorCal Transportation. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, At least 5 people shot near San Pedro beach, Safety concerns and weather conditions hamper San Bernardino County relief efforts, ICE detainees allege retaliation for speaking about medical conditions at Otay Mesa center, Desperate mountain residents trapped by snow beg for help; We are coming, sheriff says, Newsom, IRS give Californians until October to file tax returns, Californias snowpack is approaching an all-time record, with more on the way, This is me, this is my face: Actress Mimi Rogers on aging naturally, without cosmetic surgery, Downtown L.A stabbing sends six to hospital; suspect arrested, States look for solutions as fentanyl deaths keep rising, California lawmakers target fentanyl as opioid overdoses surge, Look up: The 32 most spectacular ceilings in Los Angeles, Winter storms ease drought conditions in California, report shows, 19 cafes that make L.A. a world-class coffee destination, David Lindley, guitarist best known for work with Jackson Browne, dies at 78, Best coffee city in the world? in more than a decade, authorities say Photos supplied by Orange County district attorney's office showing the 821 pounds of. Agents said the confiscated drugs will be inventoried at the warehouse before being taken to a federal facility for safekeeping. These middlemen are responsible for moving drugs through Central America and over the Southwest border into the United States. How Alaska became one of fentanyl's deadliest frontiers, FDA panel backs allowing a naloxone spray to be sold over-the-counter, Biden to tout fentanyl smuggling crackdown in State of the Union. More than 200 locations were served with search warrants. In pure form, the tonnage would hold a retail value of about $2 billion, but since cocaine is usually adulterated to about one-third strength, law enforcement officials estimated the street value at $6 billion. Opioid crisis settlements total over $50 billion. Lochridge said the suspects, who were not identified, will remain in federal custody over the weekend and probably will be arraigned Monday on state smuggling charges. Nonetheless, several law enforcement figures, among them Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl F. Gates, said the amount seized was sufficient to affect the cocaine market, at least temporarily. Newsweek previously reported that according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. In 2020, more than 23,000 Americans died from overdoses involving psychostimulants, primarily meth, according to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of California alleges that agents then saw the men removing dozens of cardboard boxes from the truck and into a Dodge van. Another was arrested at about the same time at the Marriott Hotel in Woodland Hills. A police dog kneels in front of numerous brown bags allegedly containing methamphetamine in San Diego County, California. Officials declined to say how many more people they were seeking. Market data provided by Factset. "And we introduced law and order back in those days. Click here for more: http://4.nbcla.com/SV3zVBrDont miss an NBCLA video, subscribe here: https://bit.ly/2NnofFFFor more, visit NBCLA.COM here: https://bit.ly/2uB6niEOn Facebook: https://bit.ly/2uFU1pxOn Twitter: https://bit.ly/2JsBm5YAbout NBCLAThe West Coast flagship station of the NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations, serving the vast region since 1949. With fentanyl in an estimated 40 percent of street drugs, its not a matter of if but when someone you know and love dies from fentanyl, Spitzer said Wednesday. On Thursday, Hazell said, the surveillance team saw a car leave the warehouse, and team members followed it to East Los Angeles, where the driver got out and another man got in. The investigation led to search warrants being served at narcotics stash houses in the Riverside County cities of Moreno Valley and Perris, east of Los Angeles. / CBS News. National correspondent Bill Melugin reports on the major drug raid allegedly tied to Mexican cartels. "The biggest thanks is going to have to go to my detectives for their hard work," said Acting Salinas Police Chief Roberto Filice. "This is enough dope to prove a dose of meth for every man, women and child in the United States and Mexico," DEA Acting Administrator Timothy Shea said. The raids followed a tip from a neighborhood businessman who saw activities that didnt look quite right at the warehouse where, according to authorities, an import business dealing in inexpensive ceramics, paintings and other bric-a-brac was operated as a front. Los Angeles, Calmes: Heres what we should do about Marjorie Taylor Greene, This fabled orchid breeder loves to chat just not about Trader Joes orchids, Randall Emmett, Ambyr Childers settle domestic violence restraining order dispute. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. More than 170 law enforcement personnel aided in the search warrants and helped in the apprehension of the suspects. Legal Statement. Officers also seized 821 pounds of methamphetamine and 189.7 pounds of cocaine after pulling over the minivan leaving a Buena Park home. The first man returned to the warehouse, but officers said they stopped the car and arrested the second man, who gave his name, sarcastically, as Ronald Reagan.. Large quantities of the drug have been discovered in trucks that entered the country through the Otay Mesa commercial point of entry before. according to the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention. DEA Acting Administrator Timothy J. Shea and other law enforcement officials displayed theevidence during a press conference at a DEA warehouse in Montebello. Los Angeles police said the total amount of cocaine seized in Sylmar was 39,600 pounds, or 19.8 tons. Updated appreciated. Agents seized more than 4,800 pounds of meth nationwide and are still working on more arrests, according to the DEA. More than 5,000 pounds of methamphetamine were seized in National City, California. One of the largest drug busts in Monterey County, California history was pulled off when nearly $2 million worth of illegal drugs were seized by Salinas police and federal agents, as. Nearly 375,000 marijuana plants and 33,480 pounds of harvested marijuana were seized, along with 65 vehicles, 180 animals and $28,000. A furry hero sniffs out one of the largest drug busts in Fontana. Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All rights reserved. That seizure carried an estimated street value of $2.56 million, CBP said. Why are people treating me this way? Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Despite these staggering figures, a law enforcement source in Mexico said the loss of the cash could hurt the drug ring more than the loss of cocaine. DEA CNN More than 5,000 pounds of methamphetamine were seized this week after authorities in San Diego. The L.A. plantations also hog water from local alfalfa, carrot, and potato farmers. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Discovery Company. Massive federal drug bust, likely the largest in the Bay Area, nets 1,000 pounds of meth, 44 suspects Michael Cabanatuan Feb. 11, 2021 Updated: Feb. 11, 2021 6:45 p.m. We wanted SWAT.. Just north of L.A. in Antelope Valley, California, officials tracked down, identified and destroyed 70 to 80 outhouses filled with illegal marijuana plots in the open desert. The price is going to go up.. The search at the Sherman Oaks apartment turned up little, but Dist. They have pleaded not guilty and remain in custody on $5-million bail, the D.A.s office said. Mike Holm, a DEA agent in Los Angeles, said the SWAT team was called in to guard the warehouse because we had a large amount of money and drugs in there., We know the Colombians have made threats against law enforcement agencies, he said. LOS ANGELES (AP) _ Police and federal agents seized 1,700 pounds of cocaine with an estimated street value of $500 million, three days after a bust netted up to 2,400 pounds of the drug in Tijuana, Mexico, authorities said Saturday. Authorities in Southern California have seized more than 16 tons of marijuana worth an estimated $1.19 billion, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department officials said Wednesday. Fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid, is as much as 100 times more potent than morphine, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which on Wednesday released a letter warning state and federal law enforcement agencies that the drug was driving a nationwide spike of mass overdose events amid the worsening opioid epidemic. Sign up for FOX 11s Fast 5 newsletter. The CBP confirmed that the drug seizures were the largest busts in the U.S. for both meth and fentanyl for this year and last year, prosecutors said. Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department documented the biggest drug bust in its history on Tuesday and officials expect Mexican cartels are to blame. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Desperate mountain residents trapped by snow beg for help; We are coming, sheriff says, Look up: The 32 most spectacular ceilings in Los Angeles, Winter storms ease drought conditions in California, report shows, 19 cafes that make L.A. a world-class coffee destination, David Lindley, guitarist best known for work with Jackson Browne, dies at 78, Best coffee city in the world? Hazell said that after the informant called authorities Wednesday, the DEA, the Los Angeles Police Department and an interagency task force that includes representatives of the Treasury Department, the U.S. Customs Service and the Arcadia, Bell, Huntington Park and Maywood police departments, began surveillance of the warehouse. The department brought in massive bulldozers to raid the scene, completely leveling the illegal grows and there are reportedly hundreds more to tackle. Todd Spitzer said in a statement about the bust. The operation found that NorCal Transportation was directly connected to the Sinaloa Cartel. SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- Two alleged drug dealers were behind bars Wednesday after what Orange County authorities described as the largest drug bust in the past 16 years. They allegedly seized 444 kilograms of cocaine, 157 kilograms of crystal meth, 427 kilograms of marijuana and 300 oxycodone pills. Federal authorities said contents of the seized packages weighed more than 5,000 pounds, an amount they believe constituted at least one of San Diego County's largest methamphetamine busts in history. San Diego Roman Catholic diocese facing yet another lawsuit from its insurance company, K-Pop isnt the only hot ticket in Koreatown how trot is captivating immigrants, Los Angeles is suddenly awash in waterfalls, Officials unprepared for epic mountain blizzard, leaving many trapped and desperate, The Week in Photos: California exits pandemic emergency amid a winter landscape. published to the Salinas Police Department Facebook page, Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. The next morning, the Santa Barbara Sheriff's Office announced the 34 arrests and the seizure of 3,164 pounds of methamphetamine the biggest drug bust in the county's history, and one of the largest ever in the nation. We have teamed up with the @usarmy @deahq @vcsheriff @kernsheriff @seblasd to eradicate these illegal Marijuana groves. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. 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. Gutensohn said the traffickers maintain control over profitable distribution routes. You need money and you need it to be liquid to pay for your infrastructure. During the investigation, DEA agents and officers, along with the Fontana Police Department, identified a house in Norco where drugs were being stored. 2021 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Bill Bodner, special agent in charge of the DEA's Los Angeles Field Division, said Los Angeles is a major transshipment hub for Mexican cartels trafficking illegal drugs across the southwest border. He said the arrest went according to plan and no injuries were sustained by officers or alleged suspects. NORCO, Calif. (KABC) -- More than 3,000 pounds of methamphetamine and 66 kilograms of cocaine were found in a massive drug bust in Norco last month, making it the largest seizure of meth for. A tip from an informant led to a record drug bust. They seemed to be making an awful lot of money. Until the seizure in Sylmar, the largest haul occurred on March 10, 1984, when officials seized 11 tons of cocaine in Tranquilandia, Colombia. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC.