Two big drug busts a day apart in San Joaquin County took hundreds of pounds of drugs off the streets.
The first came Tuesday when a driver consented to have his car searched after a traffic stop near Mariposa Road and Highway 99 in Stockton.
A San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office drug-sniffing dog named Jack alerted deputies to the presence of narcotics. More than 17 pounds of fentanyl were discovered in a speaker box inside the vehicle. The amount could have provided millions of fatal doses, sheriff’s officials said.
The San Joaquin County district attorney’s office said the driver, Francisco Eduardo Sandoval-Baez, did not possess a valid driver’s license and told authorities he was returning to Mexico after attending a party in the United States.
He was booked into the San Joaquin County jail on narcotics charges, sheriff’s officials said. Bail was set for Sandoval-Baez at $1 million pending further proceedings following his arraignment, the DA’s office said.
“The seizure of 8 kilograms of fentanyl in this case represents a critical strike against the deadly tide of narcotics flooding our communities,” District Attorney Ron Freitas said in a statement. “This is enough poison to wipe out millions of lives, and we will not stand idly by while traffickers prey on the vulnerable.”
The bust wasn’t the only one authorities made last week.
A day later, sheriff’s officials joined with the Metro Narcotics Task Force, Stockton and Tracy police departments and the county probation department to execute search warrants at four locations. The raids resulted in a huge haul of drugs.
The bust, including three arrests, capped a months-long investigation, authorities said.
Approximately 16,500 fentanyl pills, 72 pounds of methamphetamine and 83 pounds of marijuana were seized. In addition, deputies took control of two handguns, $5,481 in cash and two meth labs.
The arrests included Jose Villegas-Urrea, Jose Garcia-Soto and Alfredo Contreras Balbuena, all of whom were booked on various drug-related charges, sheriff’s officials said.