Southland Raids Net 40 Pounds of Cocaine

A task force of about 70 police officers, led by Burbank police, seized 40 pounds of cocaine, expensive cars and jewelry and arrested 14 people Thursday in a dozen raids in Los Angeles and Orange counties, authorities said.

The raids began at 7:05 a.m. at homes in Burbank, North Hollywood, Canoga Park, Woodland Hills, Rosemead, Azuza and El Toro, Burbank Police Sgt. Bob Kight said.

Police estimated the street value of the cocaine at $3.5 million. Also confiscated were $50,000 in cash, $60,000 in jewelry and furs and eight cars, including a Rolls Royce and two Corvettes, Kight said.

Most Suspects Foreign Nationals

The suspects, including two juveniles, were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to transport cocaine, Kight said. Most were Mexican or Colombian citizens, police said.

The adults were being held in lieu of $1-million bail each at the Burbank Jail, Kight said.

The raids, which followed a four-week investigation, also resulted in the seizure of an undetermined number of handguns and semiautomatic rifles, Kight said.

Police said they think Javier Hernandez Flores, 36, of Burbank was the distributor for the others arrested in the raids. Flores, who was arrested with his wife, Graciola, 32, and their two sons in the 700 block of Wilson Court, is on parole for a 1983 conviction stemming from the seizure of 30 pounds of cocaine, Kight said.