The two busts netted 67 pounds of methamphetamine and nearly three pounds of cocaine. All of it was smuggled across a border checkpoint and traced to a drug cartel in Mexico.
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Acting on a tip from a confidential informant, Fresno police stopped this car in downtown Fresno on Thursday night. They found more than five pounds of methamphetamine hidden inside the wheel well and arrested the driver.
Further investigation led to a trailer park in Dinuba, where police and federal DEA agents moved in Friday morning. Inside they found 57 pounds of pure methamphetamine and nearly three pounds of cocaine. A handgun and 1200 rounds of rifle ammuntion were also found.
The wholesale value of the drugs is estimated at half a million dollars. Street value would be much higher.
Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer says it may be the biggest meth bust in city history. He says it all came from a Mexican drug cartel.
"No question this methamphetamine came across the border from Mexico, through a port of entry no doubt, hidden in a vehicle somehow and undetected."
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Three men are in custody. All are from the Michoacan region in Mexico and had lived in the area for about two years.
Dyer says the bust is significant because methamphetamine remains the biggest source of crime in Fresno.
"It drives the violence in our communities, it fuels the gang violence and removing this amount of narcotics from our streets is significant," Dyer says.
The suspects are charged with possession for sale and distribution of narcotics. It hasn't been decided if they will be tried by Fresno county or in Federal Court.
Police say none of the three suspects in custody are affiliated with gangs, but it's believed gang members are used to sell the drugs in neighborhoods.