"We're here today to announce the arrest of three major fentanyl traffickers involved in cartel activity and the seizure of 14 million — yes, you heard that right — 14 million lethal doses of fentanyl," Bonta said Tuesday. "This is our biggest bust yet."
"This powdered fentanyl would've been turned into pills," he said.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announces criminal charges in a case involving the seizure of more than 50 pounds of fentanyl in the city of Downey in Los Angeles County, on March 11, 2025. KCAL NewsThree defendants, including a pair of siblings, are facing the following criminal charges in the case.
Priscilla Gomez, 43, of Torrance: three counts of possession for sale of a controlled substance, one count sale/transportation/offer to sell controlled substance. Gustavo Omar Gomez, 47, of Huntington Park: two counts of possession for sale of a controlled substance. Carlos Manuel Mariscal, 38, of Huntington Park: two counts of possession for sale of a controlled substance, one count of possession of a silencer and one count of unlawful possession of ammunition prohibited by a prior conviction.Prosecutors asked the court to set bail at $60,000 for Mariscal, $35,000 for Priscilla Gomez and $10,000 for Gustavo Gomez.
"This one seizure could've killed, literally, every resident in LA County by itself," Hochman said. "And to give you an idea and a perspective: In 2024, across the U.S.-Canadian border, there was less than 50 pounds of fentanyl seized. So they seized, in one afternoon, more fentanyl than was seized in the entire U.S.-Canadian border in an entire year — in one apartment."
Fentanyl poisoning is the leading cause of death of among U.S. adults age 18 to 45, surpassing car accidents, gun violence and suicide, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The California Department of Justice's Fentanyl Enforcement Program was launched in 2021. Bonta said the special task force has made more than 480 arrests in the less than five years since then. In the same span of time, district attorneys across Southern California have cracked down on crimes linked to fatal fentanyl overdoses, filing murder charges in a growing number of cases.
Even more politically progressive prosecutors have begun filing murder charges in these cases. Last year, former LA County DA George Gascón, who had campaigned on a platform against heavy penalties for drug-related crimes, charged an alleged fentanyl dealer with murder for the first time.
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