THOUSAND OAKS : Deputies Arrest 7 on Drug Charges

Narcotics detectives seized $43,000 worth of marijuana and arrested two suspected drug dealers at a Thousand Oaks house Wednesday.

Undercover officers then arranged for customers calling the house to meet them there, sold them marijuana and arrested five of them, Ventura County Sheriff’s Sgt. Gary Pentis said.

“We’re trying to be a little innovative,” Pentis said.

Robert Blackburn, 26, was being held in Ventura County Jail on suspicion of possession of marijuana for sale, suspicion of possession of dangerous drugs and suspicion of possession of stolen property. Bail was set at $10,000, a jail spokesman said.

Jeff Turley, 18, was arrested on suspicion of possession of marijuana for sale.

The investigation started a week ago when a source told sheriff’s deputies that Blackburn was a drug dealer, Pentis said. Deputies drove by Blackburn’s house in the 1700 block of Aleppo Court and saw four marijuana plants growing on the front porch behind a fence, he said.

They obtained a search warrant and served it at 9 p.m. Wednesday, discovering about five pounds of marijuana, 10 hits of LSD, 18 tablets of the prescription painkiller Demerol, $2,000 in cash and a stolen pistol, Pentis said.

The house also contained 257 tablets of Dilaudid, a prescription drug that acts like heroin. Deputies believe that Blackburn was dealing Dilaudid, which sells on the street for about $20 a tablet, Pentis said.

After Blackburn and Turley were arrested, deputies started searching the house. The phone began ringing, and undercover detectives answered about 15 calls from people wanting to buy marijuana, Pentis said.

The detectives told the buyers to come to the house. When the callers arrived, an undercover detective posed as a drug dealer, received the cash and gave the buyers the drug. A team of detectives then arrested the buyers on suspicion of possession of marijuana as they left the property.

Arrested were Lawrence Stulpin, 23, Bryon Murray, 19, Darren McNeil, 19, and Steven Koenig, 20, all of Thousand Oaks, and James Diehl, 20, of Newbury Park. All were released on their own recognizance except for Koenig, who was wanted on an outstanding warrant, Pentis said. He was being held in the Ventura County Jail on $10,000 bail, a jail spokesman said.