2 Santa Ana Men Held in Cocaine Case
Federal officials arrested four people Friday, including two from Santa Ana, on suspicion of conspiracy to distribute 400 kilograms of cocaine, authorities said.
A fifth suspect was arrested on a related weapons charge, and a sixth is believed to be at large in Mexico, according to Assistant U.S. Atty. Nick Hanna.
The arrests were a result of an investigation by the Southern California Drug Task Force, a joint federal, state and local law enforcement agency that includes the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
At least 386 kilograms of cocaine were smuggled into Southern California from Mexico, according to Hanna, and distributed throughout the United States, to such places as Santa Fe Springs, Boise, Idaho; Minneapolis, Minn.; and Vermont. The same suspects have been linked to a May 15, 1993, seizure of approximately $5 million in cash from a home and vehicle in Baldwin Park, authorities said.
Those arrested on the federal charges were identified as Ramon Ruiz-Ojeda, 26, and Jose Ricardo Loaiza, 29, both of Santa Ana; and Jose Ruiz-Zavala, 43, and Maria Concepcion Herrera, both of Diamond Bar.
Lamberto Recio-Godoy, of Culiacan, Mexico, is still at large. Martin Antonio Coronel-Lopez, of Covina, was arrested on state charges of possessing an unregistered assault weapon.
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