Semi hauling kilos of cocaine tracked from Mexico border to Tracy, sheriff says
TRACY – A truckload of cocaine was seized by law enforcement officers in Tracy this week, authorities say.
The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office says, on Tuesday, agencies from across the region intercepted a semi-truck that had been tracked from the Mexican border to Tracy.
Inside the truck, authorities found, was a shipment of 189 kilos – or more than 415 pounds – of cocaine.
Authorities let the truck pull up to a residence off Koster Road. Agents then closed in, leading to two suspects eventually being taken into custody. More than 200 pounds of marijuana were also found inside the residence, the sheriff's office said.
Luis Gomez-Valencia and Julio Vega-Hernandez were arraigned Friday on several drug trafficking charges, authorities said. Bail for each man was set at $5 million, and they each face up to 34 years in state prison.
Both men are expected to appear in San Joaquin County court again on May 12.
"This was an extraordinary seizure that dealt a significant blow to a major drug trafficking operation, and my message to other traffickers is this: if you traffic dangerous narcotics into our communities, we will find you, we will dismantle your operation, and we will hold you fully accountable," San Joaquin County District Attorney Ron Freitas said in the arraignment announcment. "The magnitude of this seizure reflects not only the threat posed by transnational drug trafficking, but also the strength of our partnerships in shutting it down before it could destroy lives."
A number of different agencies helped the sheriff's office in the operation, including: Homeland Security Investigations, the San Joaquin County Metro Narcotics Task Force, Stockton police, Tracy police, San Joaquin County Probation, and the San Joaquin County District Attorney's Office.
