Feds Announce Biggest Meth Bust In U.S. History: Riverside County

MORENO VALLEY, CA — Federal agents on Wednesday announced what they called the largest methamphetamine bust by Drug Enforcement Agency investigators in domestic U.S. history, displaying a 10-foot-high pile of the drug weighing more than 3 tons seized at stash houses in Riverside County.

"This is enough dope to provide a dose of meth for every man, woman and child in the United States and Mexico," DEA Acting Administrator Timothy Shea said. "Study after study shows that where there is meth addiction, there is also an uptick in violent crime, including robberies, assaults and murders."

Operation Crystal Shield has been a nationwide effort involving 70 to 80 investigators in multiple cities, including Perris, Fontana, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix and Atlanta. Agents seized more than 5,000 pounds of meth nationwide and are still working on more arrests, according to the DEA.

The Southern California seizure occurred on Oct. 2 and included 893 pounds of cocaine, 13 pounds of heroin and 2,200 pounds of methamphetamine. 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.

The biggest haul was in Perris, where DEA agents and investigators from several municipal police departments last week confiscated 2,224 pounds of meth, 893 pounds of cocaine and 13 pounds of heroin, according to Shea.

"The largest DEA domestic seizure of methamphetamine in history is a significant blow to the cartels, but more importantly, it is a gigantic victory for communities throughout Southern California and the United States that have had to deal with the torrent of methamphetamine coming into their neighborhoods," he said. "We continue to work with our state and local partners to attack drug trafficking at all levels, and this seizure sends a clear message that we mean business."

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.

Since June, couriers and a stash house for the drugs were identified through ongoing surveillance, much of it conducted by Fontana Police Department personnel, authorities said.

The historic Southern California seizure stemmed from a shadowing operation on Oct. 2, when investigators observed a courier make a drop in a Sam's Club parking lot in Moreno Valley. Two duffel bags replete with narcotics allegedly changed hands. The parties involved were detained, culminating in a search warrant being obtained and served at the courier's Perris residence.

Twenty-five duffel bags loaded with cocaine, heroin and meth were seized, according to the DEA.

"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. "The Justice Department is committed to making our neighborhoods safer by aggressively disrupting drug cartel operations in the United States."

The drugs were intended for distribution throughout the region, investigators said.

Arrests were not announced.

On Friday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at an Otay Mesa commercial facility in San Diego County seized more than 3,100 pounds of methamphetamine, fentanyl powder, fentanyl pills and heroin as part what the DEA characterized as the second-largest methamphetamine bust along the southwest border in the history of the CBP.

“This massive seizure is testament of what law enforcement agencies can do when we combine forces — prevent over $7 million worth of deadly drugs from entering our country, thus saving countless lives from addiction and overdose deaths,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge John W. Callery. “DEA cherishes our great law enforcement partners in San Diego, especially those who work tirelessly to protect our nation’s borders. We will continue to work together to disrupt drug trafficking organizations at every opportunity we are given.”

Around 9:45 a.m. Friday, a driver arrived at a cargo border crossing with a tractor-trailer shipment that was manifested as medical supplies. The officer referred the driver, truck and shipment for a more intensive inspection, which is when the illicit contraband was discovered, according to the DEA.

“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. “I’m proud of the CBP officers’ dedication to our mission; they continue to stop dangerous drugs from entering our communities."

In total, CBP officers found approximately 3,014 pounds of methamphetamine, 64 pounds of heroin, 29 pounds of fentanyl powder and almost 37 pounds of fentanyl pills, worth an estimated $7.2 million.

The truck driver, a 47–year-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. His identity was not provided.

—City News Service contributed to this report.