Santa Barbara, Calif.  – At approximately 3:04 a.m. this morning, Santa Barbara Sheriff’s detectives, patrol deputies, and personnel with allied agencies intercepted a panga boat at Arroyo Quemada beach that was carrying 3,164 pounds of methamphetamine, making this the largest drug seizure in the history of Santa Barbara County. It is also one of the largest methamphetamine seizures in the nation’s history. Detectives from Santa Barbara County Special Investigations Bureau were assisted by Sheriff’s K9 Units, County Air Support and outside agencies including the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security, FBI, United States Coast Guard, California State Parks Police and the California Highway Patrol K9 and Coastal Division Air Operations. This interception was part of an extensive investigation and cooperative effort by all of the agencies involved.

“Today’s seizure of a panga boat illicitly smuggling more than a ton and a half of methamphetamine into our county and the arrest of the 33 suspects responsible for transporting and unloading its ruinous cargo was a major milestone in counter-drug operations in Santa Barbara County,” said Sheriff Bill Brown. “Drug cartels, smugglers and illicit narcotic dealers know no international, state or local boundaries.  This successful operation was made possible only through the collaborative investigative and operational efforts of local, state and federal authorities. We will never know how many lives were saved from overdose or addictive misery as a result of this exceptional law enforcement action.”

The panga boat, which originated in Mexico, was tracked to the shore of Arroyo Quemada beach. It is a 40-foot homemade boat equipped with three 300-horsepower Yamaha engines. The arrestees include 29 adult males, 1 adult female and 3 juveniles. The 30 adults were transported by jail van and transported to the Main Jail for conspiracy (felony), and transportation of narcotics for sale (felony). Two of the suspects, Ricardo Desales and Fernando Arroyo, attempted to flee and were both bitten while being apprehended by Sheriff’s K9 units. They were both medically cleared, and booked with an additional charge of resisting arrest (misdemeanor).  All of the adult suspects were booked at the Main Jail, the juveniles were released to their parents and their identities are not available for publication. This case will be prosecuted by the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office pending review by the United States Attorney.

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