6 Tulare County men arrested for large-scale drug trafficking scheme

VISALIA, Calif. (KFSN) -- Six Tulare County men are in custody, accused of smuggling and selling large amounts of drugs across state lines.

The Tulare County Sheriff's Office arrested 35-year-old Martel Rivera of Exeter, 37-year-old Moses Rivera of Woodlake, 26-year-old Josh Rivera of Woodlake and 29-year-old Tyler Rodgers of Exeter in Las Vegas, Nevada.

They were found with 50 pounds of methamphetamine and 2,000 fentanyl pills when they were arrested.

Investigators say these men were part of a drug trafficking operation out of Tulare County.

Detectives with the sheriff's office, Visalia, Porterville, Woodlake and Farmersville police departments, and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) all worked together to track the suspects down.

All four men are facing federal charges of possession and conspiracy.

In addition to the drugs found in Nevada, detectives served several search warrants in Exeter, Farmersville and Woodlake. They seized 17 more pounds of meth, four pounds of heroin, 4.5 kilograms of cocaine and 6.6 pounds of fentanyl.

Dozens of illegal guns were also recovered during the search.

Investigators also arrested 33-year-old Adam Bennett of Woodlake on drug and weapons charges and 36-year-old Caleb Martinez of Woodlake, who had previous arrest warrants.