Yuba City man included in federal indictment related to death of El Dorado deputy

A Yuba City man was named in a federal indictment that charged four with conspiring to cultivate marijuana, cultivation of marijuana, and discharging a firearm related to the shooting death of an El Dorado Sheriff’s Deputy.

At a press conference Thursday, U.S. Attorney Mcgregor W. Scott announced that a federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment related to the death of El Dorado Sheriff’s Deputy Brian Ishmael, according to a press release from the Office of the United States Attorney Eastern District of California.

On Oct. 23 El Dorado deputies responded to a 911 call about a robbery taking place at a grow site in Placerville. When deputies arrived, a shootout ensued that left Ishmael dead.

Jorge Lamas, 25, of Yuba City, was described by Scott as the “foreman” of the illegal marijuana grow in El Dorado. Scott said that Lamas also was a foreman of an illegal grow in Georgetown and that investigators believe he was working for a man in Mexico.

Scott wouldn’t elaborate on whether the man in Mexico was connected to a cartel but did say that law enforcement has noticed a recent trend of Mexican criminal organizations approaching property owners in the United States and offering cash to use their property for grows.

“The black market in this state is alive and well,” Scott said.

The marijuana counts carry a minimum five-year prison sentence and the discharge of a firearm during a crime count carries a minimum of 10 years in prison, according to the release.