DEA agents make historic $33M drug bust in Riverside County

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.

"Synthetic drugs like methamphetamine are highly addictive, dangerous and killing people at alarming rates," DEA Los Angeles Special Agent in Charge Bill Bodner said. "This massive seizure likely saved lives and prevented the Sinaloa Cartel from doing business and profiting on the lives of people in our communities."  

According to the DEA, agents worked in concert with the Fontana Police Department to interdict a drug supply operation run by the Sinaloa Cartel, with a residence in Norco serving as a major piece of the pipeline.  

Cocaine and meth were being distributed throughout the region from the location, which investigators identified in September, according to the DEA.   

At the end of the month, a stakeout of the property led to federal agents and police officers arresting a man who was carrying heavy boxes out of the house and placing them in a vehicle, according to the DEA.

"A search of the vehicle resulted in the seizure of 66 kilograms of cocaine and an additional seizure of approximately 3,552 pounds of methamphetamine from numerous boxes located in the garage," the agency stated. "The total seized drugs have an estimated street value of $33 million."  

The DEA said it represented the single "largest seizure" of meth that the agency's Los Angeles personnel had ever made.   

"The greater Los Angeles area is a major transshipment hub where illegal drugs coming from the southwest border are stored in local warehouses, storage units and residential properties," according to the DEA. "The bulk shipments of drugs are usually broken down into smaller quantities and transported to other states or distributed to local dealers."  

The agency did not disclose whether any arrests had been made or were pending, saying only that the investigation is ongoing.