MERCED, Calif. (KMPH) -
More than 330 pounds of methamphetamine bound for
communities around the state are off the street thanks to a Central Valley drug task force.
Authorities say it is the largest meth bust in Central Valley history.
Meth
use can cause users to lose touch with reality and commit
serious, often deadly crimes.
"It's not a day that doesn't go by wherein I have someone in my office
whose family member, friend has not been consumed by this poison," Merced County Sheriff Mark Pazin said during a news conference Wednesday morning.
Authorities say the investigation started when an undercover agent bought a pound of meth from a man in the Livingston area back in April. Agents say they found out the meth was tied to a Mexican drug cartel. They served search warrants at a couple of homes in Southern California, where they confiscated most of the drug.
"There's just not one of
these horrid packs of wild dogs running around in Mexico. They have
infiltrated and crossed the border to go ahead and spread this gut-wrenching, ugly methamphetamine in and around Merced County, the state of California and the entire United States," Pazin said.
Agents estimate the street value of the meth to be more than $9 million.
Eleven
people were arrested and booked into the Merced County Jail in connection with this case.
If convicted, they could face 20 years in prison.
