8,500 Pounds of Cocaine Seized; 25 People Arrested : Drugs: Two investigations net $150 million worth of narcotic. Anaheim police say Irvine home was used as distribution center.

A task force of local and federal authorities has made 25 arrests and seized more than $150 million worth of cocaine, ending two major narcotics investigations, federal prosecutors said.

A large part of one investigation, initiated by Anaheim police, apparently centered in Irvine where traffickers used a private home as a distribution center.

In addition to the arrests and seizure of more than 8,500 pounds of cocaine in the two cases, Assistant U.S. Atty. Melinda Haag in Los Angeles said authorities also recovered an undisclosed amount of cash and other assets valued in excess of $500,000.

Anaheim police Wednesday declined to elaborate on their involvement in the cases, but officials have scheduled a news conference this afternoon at city police headquarters to display a portion of the drugs seized during the investigations.

“The initial surveillance was started by police in Anaheim, and I think we caught it pretty early on,” Haag said. “This is certainly a large amount.”

Also taking part in the investigations were the Fullerton Police Department, U.S. Customs Service and agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Haag said she is overseeing the indictments of 13 suspects, one of whom remains a fugitive. None listed Orange County addresses, and many in the group are believed to be Colombian nationals. All face charges ranging from possession and distribution counts to other charges involving conspiracy allegations.

Haag said she entered the case in January when Anaheim detectives and other authorities traced some of the suspects from a Norwalk motel to the home in Irvine. The location of the home was not disclosed.

On Feb. 1, the prosecutor said, investigators watched as a U-Haul truck allegedly arrived at the home at different times over a six-week period bringing a total of 4,000 pounds of the drug.

Some portions of the deliveries were later transferred to “stash houses” in Pico Rivera and Moreno Valley. From those houses, packages of the drug were allegedly allocated in varying portions to other traffickers for sale in various communities, Haag said.

She said other parts of the investigations were being handled by another federal prosecutor who could not be reached for comment late Wednesday. Officials with the Customs Service, DEA and Fullerton Police also could not be reached for comment. Remaining details about the task force probes were expected to be revealed at today’s news conference.

Authorities began making some of the arrests in late May and indictments were issued against 13 of the suspects early last month.

During the arrests, authorities reportedly seized packages of the drug marked as having come from Bogota.

Haag said she did not know how Anaheim police became involved in the case.

Of the 25 reportedly arrested in the investigations, only the 13 under indictment in cases handled by Haag were immediately identified. They included: Jose Yepez, 43, of Valencia; Jairo Cuevas Alvarez, 41, La Mirada; Miguel Ortiz, 37, West Covina; Jose Manuel Pinto, 27, Culver City; Edgar Florez, 42, Moreno Valley; Yolanda Andrade, 47, Van Nuys; Eliseo Castillo, 27, Van Nuys; Edgar Maldonado, 33, Los Angeles; Jamel Moreno, 36, Venice; Francisco Audia, 39, Los Angeles; Constantino Corral, 46, San Leandro; Fabian Bruce Owens, 24, Long Beach; and another suspect identified only as Oscar who remains a fugitive.