A former Riverside County sheriff’s correctional deputy accused of transporting 104 pounds of fentanyl pills in his private car came under suspicion during an investigation into Sinaloa cartel activities in the county, law enforcement authorities revealed.
Investigators had not previously explained how they came to target Jorge Oceguera-Rocha.
The apparent connection was made in a news release issued by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and the Riverside Police Department on Wednesday, April 25, announcing the arrests of 15 people in Operation Hotline Bling. Officers with the DEA, Riverside Police Department and U.S. Postal Service Inspection Service seized 376 pounds of methamphetamine, 37.4 pounds of fentanyl, 600,000 fentanyl tablets, 1.4 kilograms of cocaine and seven firearms.
“During the course of the investigation, agents developed information regarding a corrupt Riverside County Correctional Deputy … ultimately assisting in the arrest of the deputy while he was in possession of 104 pounds of fentanyl pills,” the release said.
The release did not identify Oceguera-Rocha by name. However, Officer Ryan Railsback, a Riverside police spokesman, said the deputy arrested on the 10 Freeway in Calimesa on Sept. 17 who authorities said had 104 pounds of fentanyl pills in his car is the same person.
Also, the release did not specifically say the deputy was working for the Sinaloa Cartel, and DEA spokeswoman Rosa Valle-Lopez on Thursday declined to confirm that link. But in announcing Oceguera-Rocha’s arrest, the Sheriff’s Department said he had “a pivotal role of trafficking large quantities of narcotics within Riverside County while off duty.”
Capt. Rob Roggeveen, in an interview after the arrest, said “We are doing everything in our investigative capabilities to ensure we dismantle the drug trafficking organization Oceguera is affiliated with.”
Oceguera-Rocha, a 25-year-old Banning resident, has pleaded not guilty to charges of possession of a controlled substance and possession of a controlled substance for sales, both felonies. He is due back in court on Monday. He resigned after his arrest.
The DEA said investigators seized enough fentanyl from the Sinaloa operatives to produce 10 million lethal doses. Overdoses from that prescription painkiller are the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 to 45, the DEA said. The street value of all the drugs seized was estimated at $16 million.
A federal grand jury indictment charging conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine resulted in six people being charged so far and the issuance of 16 arrest warrants. The indictment said they operated a stash house in Perris, where the drugs were packaged for mailing to customers from post offices in Homeland, Menifee and Jurupa Valley.
