3 Held Without Bail After Drug Seizure
A federal magistrate in Santa Ana ordered three men held without bail Thursday after they were arrested in connection with the confiscation of about half a ton of cocaine from a van and an Ontario house.
Two of the men were arrested at the house after the other was stopped while driving the van along the Riverside Freeway in Orange County. The arrests Wednesday capped a joint operation by the FBI and West Covina police, FBI spokesman Fred Reagan said.
The van was followed by officers and agents as it left the house at 2118 Vine Ave. in Ontario about 12:15 p.m. and was eventually stopped on the freeway near Imperial Highway.
The driver, Jerry Colon, 34, of Los Angeles, was arrested. Inside the van, agents found 186 wrapped packages believed to be cocaine. Each package weighed a kilogram--2.2 pounds.
Several hours later, agents and police searched the house and arrested residents Nicandro Lugo-Arredondo, 33, and Tirso Baez-Arredondo, 30.
Agents and officers said they found packages of cocaine in a closet in the house and in a vehicle in the garage, according to documents filed in the case. Two assault rifles were also discovered.
Altogether, the cocaine seizures totaled 1,025 pounds, which Reagan termed “significant.”
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