$55 million worth of fentanyl seized in Southern California; 3 suspects facing decades in prison
Three alleged fentanyl dealers – including a brother and sister – are facing decades in prison for their roles in a major drug trafficking scheme, local and state officials announced on Tuesday.
The trio is accused of possessing more than 50 pounds of fentanyl with an intent to sell, according to L.A. County District Attorney Nathan Hochman’s office. It is further alleged that the weight of the substance containing fentanyl is more than 20 kilograms.
They were caught after a joint investigation between the California Department of Justice’s Fentanyl Enforcement Program and the Downey Police Department turned up the large cache in an apartment within the city of Downey on Jan. 22, authorities said.
The DOJ added that, in the Jan. 22 bust, five kilograms of heroin, ten pounds of methamphetamine, a kilogram of cocaine, narcotics packaging and two firearm suppressors were also located.
The 50 pounds seized is more than all the fentanyl seized at the U.S.-Canada border in 2024, officials said; a total of 43 pounds was seized at the border last year, and a single kilogram of fentanyl is enough to kill 500,000 people. California Attorney General Rob Bonta stated that the seizure equates to 14 million lethal doses of the drug.
The approximate street value of the seized fentanyl, if sold by the gram, would be between $453,000 and $1.36 million.
“This one seizure could have killed literally every resident in L.A. County by itself,” DA Hochman said at Tuesday’s press conference.
The suspects were identified as Carlos Manuel Mariscal of Huntington Park, Gustavo Omar Gomez, also of Huntington Park, and Priscilla Gomez of Torrance. The latter two are siblings, the DA’s office confirmed.
Mariscal, 39, is charged with two counts of possession for sale of a controlled substance, one count of possession of a silencer and another count of unlawful possession of ammunition prohibited by a prior conviction. He is being held on $60,000 bail, and if convicted as charged, he faces 31 years and eight months in prison.
44-year-old Priscilla Gomez faces two counts of possession for sale of a controlled substance as well as a single count of sale, transportation or offer to sell a controlled substance. She is being held on $35,000 bail and could spend 28 years in prison if convicted as charged.
Her brother Gustavo, 48, is charged with two counts of possession for sale of a controlled substance and faces 24 years in prison if convicted as charged. His bail was set at $10,000.
The preliminary hearing for Mariscal and Gustavo Gomez is set for March 20. Priscilla Gomez remains in federal custody.