Four Defendants in Operation Orion Gang Sweep Plead Guilty

Four men arrested in one of the largest gang sweeps in Orange County history pleaded guilty Friday to dealing drugs, officials from the Orange County district attorney’s office said.

Miguel De La Riva Lopez, Robert Gariby, Shane Diaz and Peter Medrano were each charged with one count of selling drugs. None of the four had previous felony convictions or gang affiliation, said Jeff Ferguson of the DA’s office.

The four were sentenced to probation ranging from six months to a year. “We are trying to be as fair and reasonable as possible,” Ferguson said. “These were the cases that were the easiest to resolve.”

Officials in the Public Defender’s office, which represented the four, were not available for comment.

The four men were among dozens of suspected drug and weapons dealers arrested March 15 by police and FBI agents in a troubled Santa Ana neighborhood. The sweep, called Operation Orion, capped a seven-month investigation into several gangs, investigators said.

The pleas were entered in Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana as pretrial motions were heard for 65 defendants. Hearings took place in two adjoining courtrooms, with some attorneys shuttling between them.