Narcotics Team Seizes 319 Pounds of Cocaine

An Orange County regional narcotics squad seized 319 pounds of cocaine with an estimated value of $30 million and $120,000 in cash and arrested two people on charges of possessing cocaine for sale, a Sheriff’s Department official said Friday.

Arrested were Francisco Javier Ubanda-Vasquez, 20, a mechanic from Placentia, and Maria Teresa Marin, 29, of Fullerton, Sheriff’s Capt. Tim Simon said. Both had been under investigation for two weeks by the Orange County Regional Narcotics Suppression Program, he said.

Ubanda-Vasquez was arrested Thursday as he attempted to drive a vehicle away from a Yorba Linda shopping center at 17500 Yorba Linda Blvd. In searching his vehicle, officers found 27 kilograms of cocaine packaged in duffel bags, Simon said. Investigators later obtained two search warrants and found 137 kilos of cocaine in an upstairs bedroom closet of a residence at 8584 Jamestown Drive, Yorba Linda. The cocaine was in duffel bags similar to the type found in the vehicle driven by Ubanda-Vasquez, the Sheriff’s Department said.

Another five kilos of cocaine and about $120,000 in cash were discovered in a second residence at 2223 Vista del Sol, Fullerton, investigators said.

Marin was arrested after police found her inside the Fullerton residence, which she listed as her home address.

Both suspects were taken to Orange County Jail and booked for possession of a controlled substance for sale. Bail on each was set at $25,000.