More than 40 alleged members and associates of San Diego County gangs have been indicted following a two-year investigation into a Poway-based gang with alleged Mexican Mafia ties, authorities said Friday.
Law enforcement officials made 35 arrests Wednesday and Thursday in an operation that fanned out throughout the region and beyond, to Riverside County and Central California, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
Investigators served 10 search warrants on homes and vehicles in San Diego, Poway, Lemon Grove, National City, Chula Vista, Imperial Beach, El Cajon, Oceanside, Escondido and Vista. To the north, warrants were served in Temecula, Murrieta and Riverside, and farther afield, in Tulare.
In addition to the arrests, investigators seized drugs, guns, ammunition and cash. The targets, who range in age from 26 to 70, face various charges, including conspiracy and the alleged distribution of cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl.
Most of the defendants live in San Diego County, prosecutors said, with 11 coming from the city of San Diego and several from North County, including eight from Oceanside. Officials also arrested residents of Chula Vista, El Cajon, Escondido, Imperial Beach, Lakeside and National City.
Seven of the charged defendants, including two from Mexico, remained at large as of Friday afternoon, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
San Diego County Sheriff Kelly Martinez called the probe a “very complex case involving dozens of defendants in an investigation that crossed borders and multiple jurisdictions.”
Among those arrested was John Marquez, of Poway, allegedly a high-ranking member of a gang, Varrio Hidden Hills, described by prosecutors as an “increasingly violent and sophisticated” operation. He is accused of running cross-border drug distribution operations.
Prosecutors said Marquez, 49, received drugs largely from Mexico-based suppliers, then had people from various local gangs distribute the substances, before sending the proceeds back to his Mexican suppliers.
The FBI, members of the North County Regional Gang Task Force and federal, state and local law enforcement took part in this week’s operation, which left one group of investigators, FBI agents serving a search warrant at an East County residence, exposed early Wednesday.
As the agents approached the Lemon Grove home and identified themselves, someone fired gunshots through the front door and front window, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
None of the agents were struck. The target of the arrest warrant was taken into custody, though officials did not specify if that person was suspected of firing the shots.
City News Service contributed to this report.
