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Task force tracks drug trafficking organization, arrests alleged associates
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – An extensive investigation by the Lake County Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force into organized drug trafficking over the past several months has culminated in multiple arrests and the seizure of methamphetamine, marijuana, weapons and thousands of dollars for asset forfeiture, according to a Friday report.
In May, the Lake County Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force opened an investigation into the operations of the “Rodriguez” drug trafficking organization, according to a report from Capt. James Bauman.
Information gathered from the investigation revealed that the organization was responsible for the distribution of large amounts of methamphetamine and the illegal cultivation of marijuana throughout Lake County, Bauman reported.
To date, the investigation has resulted in the seizure of approximately one pound of methamphetamine, 1,318 marijuana plants, 205 pounds of processed marijuana, four firearms (one of which had been stolen), eleven arrests, and the seizure of $26,089 for asset forfeiture, Bauman said.
On May 19, narcotics detectives made three arrests in the city of Clearlake in relation to the investigation, Bauman said.
Those arrested included 26-year-old Michael Tremell Mitchell of Clearlake, 30-year-old Edgar Agustin Castellanos of Las Vegas and 25-year-old Fernando Flores-Nunez of Clearlake. Bauman said the men were arrested at two separate locations and all three were booked on felony narcotics charges. Castellanos and Flores-Nunez were both illegal aliens and had immigration holds placed on them.
On Aug. 5, 34-year-old Juan Manuel Rodriguez Sandoval of Clearlake was arrested for possession of marijuana for sales and cultivation of marijuana, Bauman reported. On Aug. 8, 22-year-old Juan Martinez Ruiz, a transient, was arrested for the possession of a controlled substance for sales and transportation of a controlled substance.
Both Rodriguez Sandoval and Martinez Ruiz remain in custody at the Hill Road Correctional Facility with immigration holds, he said.
On Sept. 16, narcotics detectives arrested 28-year-old Luis Benigno Rodriguezlomeli of Clearlake for having a false compartment in his vehicle that was designed for smuggling drugs, Bauman said. After detectives located the compartment, a sheriff’s narcotics detection K-9 confirmed the compartment had recently been used to conceal narcotics. Rodriguezlomeli remains in the custody of the sheriff on an immigration hold.
On Oct. 2, Jorge “George” Rodriguez, 49, of Middletown; 27-year-old Manuel Herrera Valdovinos, a transient; and 34-year-old Ruben Carra Valdovinos of Clearlake were arrested for cultivation of Marijuana and possession of marijuana for sales. Bauman said Rodriguez and Herrera Valdovinos also were charged with being armed in the commission of a felony.
All three remain in custody with immigration holds. Bauman said Rodriguez is currently on non-revocable parole for the sale of methamphetamine to an undercover police officer and has a previous conviction for being armed during the commission of a felony.
On Oct. 5, 55-year-old Rhonda Heidi Roper of Clearlake was booked at the Hill Road Correctional Facility for cultivation of marijuana and possession of marijuana for sales, Bauman said. On Oct. 7, narcotics detectives arrested 33-year-old Jeronimo Flores-Gonzalez of Clearlake for cultivation of marijuana and possession of marijuana for sales. He too, remains in custody with an immigration hold.
Bauman said the 11 arrests were the result of several months’ worth of diligent investigations by the Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force into organized drug trafficking in Lake County.
He said the effort also was supported by the Sheriff’s Special Enforcement Detail, the California Department of Fish and Game and the Lake County Probation Department.
The coordinated effort included the service of 13 search warrants, executed at residences in Clearlake, Kelseyville, Clearlake Oaks, Middletown and the city of Brentwood, Bauman said.
Sheriff Frank Rivero commended the Narcotics Task Force for their tenacious pursuit of drug traffickers and their relentless pursuit of the Rodriguez drug trafficking organization.
The Sheriff’s Narcotics Task Force can be contacted through its anonymous tip line at 707-263-3663.
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