SIMI VALLEY : 5 Held; Drugs, Arms, Cash Seized in Raid

Three Simi Valley residents and two Ventura residents were arrested Sunday after police seized about $750,000 worth of cocaine, more than $50,000 in cash and a stash of more than 100 automatic weapons, making the raid one of the county’s largest, a Ventura narcotics supervisor said.

The weapons included machine guns and automatic rifles.

“We’re talking exotic weapons, a .50-caliber machine gun like the kind they mount on jet airplanes to shoot at other aircraft,” said Sgt. Steve Bowman of the Ventura Police Department. “It looked like a sporting goods store in there.”

Arrested were Gardner Flockhart, 31, of Simi Valley on suspicion of cocaine sales and possession of firearms prohibited by federal law; Christine Lyn Helenick, 27, Simi Valley on suspicion of possession of cocaine for sale; Brian Howard Mudge, 27, Simi Valley on suspicion of possession of cocaine for sale; Robert Lloyd, 27, of Ventura on suspicion of cocaine for sale; and Lloyd’s wife, whose name, age and charges were unavailable.

Flockhart was being held without bail at the Ventura County Jail. Bail was set at $10,000 for the other four, who were also held at County Jail, Bowman said.

The arrests were the result of six months of undercover work by the Ventura, Simi Valley, Oxnard police departments, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department and the Ventura County district attorney’s office.

An Oxnard undercover agent purchased the cocaine from Robert Lloyd shortly after 1 p.m. Sunday in Simi Valley, authorities said. Police obtained a search warrant for a Simi Valley home, where three were arrested.

A 10 a.m. press conference in Ventura was planned today to display weapons and provide details.