Locals booked in drug bust
Two SCV residents pegged as members of drug-trafficking group known as the ‘Big Five’
Two Santa Clarita Valley men were among five people arrested Wednesday after a nationwide multi-agency drug investigation pegged the “Big Five” as running a “multi-state drug trafficking organization” that mailed more than 350 pounds of meth across the country between California and Pennsylvania.
The task force also arrested three of the “Big Five” leaders from California, including: Leonardo Christian Fernandez, 34, of Monrovia; Joel Travis Hills-Garcia, 29; and Patrick M. Fry, 43, both of Saugus.
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele announced in Pennsylvania Wednesday that several law enforcement agencies including the FBI had dismantled “a multi-state drug trafficking organization that used the U.S. Postal Service to mail packages of crystal methamphetamine and marijuana from California to traffickers in Montgomery County dating back to at least April 2016 and the arrests of
five leaders who spearheaded the corrupt organization.”
Through the course of the investigation, law enforcement identified what they believed to be more than 350 pounds of illegal crystal methamphetamine and marijuana sent in multiple shipments.
The multi-agency task force also arrested the drug-running group’s leaders which included a man and a woman based in Ambler, Pennsylvania, and identified as Brian J. Holt, 42, and Lorraine Y. Zeno, 36, both of Ambler.
Together, these suspects were known during the investigation as the “Big Five,” Steele said Wednesday.
“Through the joint efforts of multiple law enforcement agencies, we were able to shut down a significant drug trafficking organization that was operating in Southeastern Pennsylvania and work our way back to their suppliers in California,” Steele said.
“This investigation again illustrates that law enforcement is united in our fight against deadly drugs of all kinds— heroin, opioids, fentanyl, methamphetamine and pills,” he said.
“All of this poison is killing residents of Montgomery County and other communities in the region, and those that traffic this poison need to realize it’s not worth it because we are going to keep investigating, arresting and holding accountable those responsible.”