2 Residents Arrested, Cocaine Seized
Two Oxnard residents have been arrested and 9 ounces of cocaine with a street value of $20,000 seized following a two-month police investigation, authorities said Wednesday.
Raul Raymond Acosta, 37, and Santiago Melgarejo Gaona, 24, were taken into custody Monday evening by narcotics detectives with the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.
The two were suspected of possessing cocaine for the purpose of transporting and selling the drug and conspiracy to sell cocaine. They were booked into Ventura County Jail with bail set at $20,000 apiece.
Acosta was arraigned Wednesday, and a preliminary hearing has been set Sept. 9. He remained in jail Wednesday afternoon.
Gaona, whose case was rejected, also remained in jail. Authorities were not immediately able to tell The Times why he remained in custody.
Acosta and Gaona were stopped at Johnson and North Bank drives in Ventura as they drove a van owned by Acosta containing the cocaine, deputies said. Detectives had previously made undercover cocaine purchases from Acosta and had kept him under surveillance, authorities said.
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