2 Men Arrested in Heroin Investigation
A parolee and his friend were arrested Tuesday following a monthlong police investigation that uncovered an estimated $250,000 worth of heroin that was to be sold in Ventura, authorities said.
Jose Celis Sanchez, 34, and Lucio Pena Lopez, 24, were arrested at 2:45 p.m. after officers observed the men delivering two pounds of heroin to an unidentified person at Johnson Road and North Bank Drive in Ventura, police said.
Sanchez was being held on suspicion of transporting drugs for sale and violating parole, Oxnard Police Sgt. Steven Blanchard said. Lopez was in custody on suspicion of drug sales and for warrants citing drug possession and violating probation.
Sanchez and Lopez were expected to be booked into Ventura County Jail on Tuesday night.
The investigation was conducted by the Ventura / Oxnard Narcotics Enforcement Team, a unit made up of officers from Ventura, Oxnard, the state Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement and the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.
The arrests mark the third time this month that police have uncovered suspected heroin sales in the county.
On July 8, officers arrested an Oxnard couple on suspicion of selling heroin and cocaine from inside a small wooden shack where they were living with their five children.
On July 2, two men were arrested after a three-week investigation uncovered about $50,000 worth of cocaine and heroin for sale at homes in Ventura and Santa Paula.
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