On Tuesday, Drug Enforcement Administration agents arrested several members of the Sinaloa Cartel as part of an 18-month investigation dubbed Operation Broken Glass. The arrests took place in the Salt Lake Valley and along Interstate 15 in and around Juab County.
DEA Supervisory Special Agent Sue Thomas told the Associated Press: “It was a great day. We removed the cell head, who was the guy who was coordinating the shipments coming to Utah from Mexico and California.”
Thomas said that the cartel cell was trafficking large amounts of methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin and deeply entrenched in the Salt Lake City area.
The Salt Lake Valley arrests included a traffic stop, a raid on a home in South Jordan and one at Mi Ranchito restaurant in South Salt Lake.
Agents seized more than 30 pounds of methamphetamine, 200 pounds of marijuana, a kilogram each of heroin and cocaine, several guns and over $322,000 in cash.
“As the case progressed, we had the opportunity to take some drug traffickers out (of the operation) - just quietly. ... I-15 is a pipeline and ... we'll know that drug flows are coming into Salt Lake City. It is usually advantageous to our operation to not stop them in Salt Lake City,” said Thomas.
The drugs often cross the border in California and are then shipped in relatively small amounts to western distribution hubs like Salt Lake City.
Thomas said: “A huge shipment can come into Salt Lake City, but only a small portion may make it back to Southern Utah. It can branch out all over the country.”
These drug cells are becoming more prominent in Utah.
In 2010, police in Riverton, Utah, busted a distribution operation being run in a residential neighborhood by the notoriously violent Los Zetas.
In addition to bringing large amounts of drugs into Utah from Mexico, the cartels are also actually producing drugs in the ‘Beehive State.’
In June 2011, 37 individuals were taken into custody after a large marijuana ‘grow site’ was discovered in Washington County, Utah. Most of those arrested were Mexican nationals and according to law enforcement, the site was a cartel operation.
While most of the suspects were captured, some did manage to flee.
Lt. Rob Tersigni of the Washington County Sheriff’s Office warned in a statement. “While numerous suspects were captured, there may be additional subjects still at large in the area. Avoid picking up hitchhikers and report any suspicious activity.”
The discovery was further evidence that the Mexican drug cartels are growing huge amounts of marijuana in our national parks. It is estimated that the cartels produce 30 tons of pot in our parks annually.
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