Law enforcement agents arrested 23 people and seized drugs, firearms and money Wednesday in a sweep of Northern California criminal operations that included serving search warrants in Sacramento County, the state Attorney General's Office announced Thursday.
The sweep targeted a drug-dealing ring connected to violent transnational and prison gangs that dealt narcotics and firearms in Butte, Sacramento, Placer, Glenn and Yuba counties, the attorney general's office said in a news release.
Agents made 23 arrests and seized "significant" amounts of methamphetamine, marijuana and cocaine in the sweep, according to the release. Eight firearms, including two assault rifles, and more than $17,000 in currency, were also seized.
In Sacramento County, agents from the Attorney General's Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement served a warrant in the 2300 block of Wyda Way, where they seized methamphetamine and cocaine, and arrested a 51-year-old man on suspicion of possession of drugs for sale, said Michelle Gregory, a state Department of Justice spokeswoman.
Agents also served a warrant in the 5900 block of Meadowdale Drive in Rocklin, in Placer County, where they arrested a 40-year-old man on suspicion of drug possession, Gregory said.
Search warrants were served at 16 locations in Butte, Sacramento, Placer and Yuba counties, according to the attorney general's office release. Those arrested were booked into the Butte County Jail.
The father-and-son-led criminal operation targeted in the sweep had connections to the Nortenos criminal street gang, which has ties to the prison gang Nuestra Familia, according to the release.
Among those arrested was Mario Salazar, 57, of Chico, who allegedly dealt in multiple pounds of methamphetamine by tapping into the gang affiliation of his son, Jose Salazar, 31, of Hamilton City, the release states. Jose Salazar was also arrested in the sweep, the release states.
Dubbed "Operation Mario Brothers," the investigation into the drug-dealing ring began in August and incorporated more than 200 local, state and federal law enforcement agents led by the Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement, according to the release. The investigation determined that the Salazars dealt methamphetamine and bought and sold firearms in several counties.
Information about the sweep came a day after Attorney General Kamala Harris announced the conclusion of another large gang sweep in Northern California. That operation, called "Red Reach," shut down a network of local and transnational gangs that dealt in narcotics and firearms in western Contra Costa County and surrounding areas, the attorney general's office reported.
Search warrants in that operation were served in 10 Northern California cities, including Sacramento, and resulted in 35 arrests and the seizure of more than 135 pounds of methamphetamine, the attorney general's office reported.
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