San Diego County, CA: 37 Gang Members Federally Indicted on Drug and Weapon Charges

Posted by Yaqui for Borderland Beat from: San Diego Union Tribune

                         Dozens arrested in San Diego North County Gang and Drug Networks

Official Justice Dept Press Release: justice.gov
Kristina Davis Feb 28, 2018

A year long investigation into gang networks trafficking heroin, methamphetamine and firearms  throughout North County culminated Wednesday in 11 Federal indictments against 37 people — from street dealers to mid-level managers to cross-border smugglers, authorities said.

The crackdown announced was one in the latest of  a series of DOJ efforts to reduce the opioid epidemic and reduce the levels of associated violent crime that is crippling communities.

The illicit business occurred everywhere from shopping center parking lots to outside a methadone clinic to homes across the street from schools, according to authorities.

Early Wednesday morning, more than 100 law enforcement officers from several agencies made arrests throughout North County. 

 As of today at noon, 27 of the 37 defendants are either in federal or state custody. 21 were arrested this week, including 18 this morning; the rest were already in custody. Authorities are continuing to search for 10 defendants. Many of the defendants are scheduled to be arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mitchell D. Dembin at 2:00 p.m. today and tomorrow. 

Agencies involved included: The FBI Swat Team, and the North County Regional Gang Task Force.

The investigation and operation involved months of federal wiretaps, dozens of undercover drug and gun buys, and extensive surveillance .

Many of the defendants are documented members or associates of gangs across the North County — Oceanside, Vista, San Marcos, Carlsbad, Encinitas and Escondido — with ties to the powerful Mexican Mafia prison gang, prosecutors said.

Investigators deployed wiretaps and vehicle trackers, conducted extensive surveillance and made several undercover buys to gather evidence in the cases. Throughout the investigation, they seized heroin, fentanyl, meth, and firearms , including revolvers, a semi- automatic pistol and two Ar-15 style assault rifles, authorities said.

“We have a special resolve to go after gangs that have the audacity to operate on the boundaries of our schools, where children play and learn,” said Interim U.S. Attorney Adam Braverman. 

The North County Gang Task Force began investigating in September 2016 after two gang-related killings in Oceanside. One was a botched robbery and another was done by members of a rival Oceanside gang, according to an FBI search warrant affidavit.

The killings were followed by a retaliation shooting, which wounded a bystander.

The violence prompted task force members to use a confidential source to infiltrate one of the gangs and share information with authorities.

The investigation led to Carlsbad gang member Robert “Sleepy” Gonzalez, identified as the operator of a robust heroin distribution network in Oceanside, according to authorities.

Phone wiretaps showed he sold drugs every single day of the roughly three months he was being listened to — five to 10 customers a day, up to 12 grams of heroin a day, according to court records.

He and his customers would refer to heroin as “negra,” “taco,” or “media,” and the cost as “BBQ money” or “feria” — Spanish slang for money, according to the affidavit.

Drug sales, as well as handoffs between associates, happened in parking lots throughout Oceanside, including Walmart, Harbor Freight, Mission Donuts, Burger King and El Super. Deals also went down in front of a methadone clinic, Mission Treatment Service, a place where heroin users seek relief from addiction.

Heroin was also being sold at a steady clip by Martin “Osama” Rodriguez, who would order 6 to 12 grams of heroin from Gonzalez every few days and sell it on a daily basis, according to the affidavit.

Also in Oceanside, Theresa Lapolla is accused of distributing heroin out of her home, located less than 700 feet from three schools. A search of her home revealed more than 100 grams of the drug, authorities said. her charges will double the the maximum punishment to 80 years in prison.

Some schools involved were: Jefferson Middle School, Clair W. Burgener Academy, Mission Elementary School, San Marcos High School, and Joli Ann Leichtag Elementary School. Drugs were being sold from directly across the streets of these schools and Libby Lake Park was also mentioned.

“We have a special resolve to go after gangs that have the audacity to operate on the boundaries of our schools, where children play and learn,” said Interim U.S. Attorney Adam Braverman. 

The investigation also identified Adrian “Bandit” Gomez, a documented Carlsbad gang member, as a methamphetamine dealer, authorities said. Investigators found evidence that he’d been selling the drug out of a home on Emerald Drive in Oceanside where he lived with family members, according to court documents. A handgun was found in a dresser.

In an interview with investigators, Gomez said he didn’t live at the house and the gun belonged to his brother, who had been recently killed in an officer-involved shooting.

An Encinitas gang member, Colin Jones, was arrested at Pala Indian Casino last summer with a loaded AR-15-style rifle in his car, along with heroin and ammunition, authorities said. He is accused of selling high volumes of heroin and meth.

Some of the drugs were smuggled from Tijuana in body cavities into the U.S., according to investigators. For example, Jones is accused of crossing into Mexico every five days or so to replenish his supply. Between October 7, 2016 and June 4, 2017 (four days before Jones was arrested in this case) Investigators said he used the pedestrian lanes at San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry at night 38 times in eight months prior to his arrest last summer.

U.S. Attorney Braverman praised the task force for the coordinated team effort in the culmination of this investigation. Agents and officers from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, San Diego County Sheriff’s Office, Oceanside Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Drug Enforcement Administration, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Bureau of Prisons, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Marshals Service, California Highway Patrol, and the Escondido and Carlsbad Police Departments collaborated on this investigation. 

Attorneys from the Department of Justice, Office of Enforcement Operations, Electronic Surveillance Unit, also provided critical assistance to the investigation. 

According to court documents, some of the drugs in these investigations were obtained in Tijuana, Mexico, and then North County Gang members used unsanitary methods to sneak heroin and methamphetamine across the border: They repeatedly smuggled small quantities of narcotics in body cavities, via pedestrian lanes at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa border crossings. 

The defendants face varying amounts of prison time from 4 Years to Life in prison, depending on individual charges.