More than a ton of methamphetamine in Northern California drug busts

More than a ton of methamphetamine was uncovered during recent law enforcement raids of drug labs in Northern California, representing one of the largest domestic drug seizures in U.S. history, authorities said.

“Operation Trash Panda” was executed last Friday by the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office’s Intelligence Narcotics Team and the Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office’s Narcotics Enforcement Unit. More than 100 law enforcement agents conducted high-risk search warrants across three locations.

The first was an active methamphetamine lab in the 8000 block of Center Drive in Valley Springs, according to authorities. Nearly 50 miles south, a second site was located in the 2000 block of Golf Road in Turlock, which law enforcement officials said contained all the equipment necessary to operate as a lab but was shut down before production began. The third site, located in the 900 block of Reno Avenue in Modesto, was used by the drug trafficking organization to store and distribute illicit narcotics, which were being sold throughout Northern California, authorities said.

Law enforcement agents seized more than 2,700 pounds of methamphetamine, with a street value of $4 million, “which represents a substantial disruption to an alleged narcotic supply chain,” the Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office said. Law enforcement also seized 1,900 marijuana plants and more than 100 pounds of processed marijuana.

Dozens of firearms also were recovered, including handguns with images of Santa Muerte (a Mexican folk saint venerated by drug dealers), and more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition.

The busts led to the arrest of eight suspects on state and federal charges, including one who was on the National Terrorist Watch List, authorities said.

Some of the drugs seized in the Northern California operation.

(Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office)

The joint investigation began last October after authorities found evidence of clandestine drug lab byproducts in an illegal dumping site in Calaveras County, they said. At least nine other agencies assisted in the operation, including the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Identities are being withheld as the investigation remains active.