Bakersfield Man Sentenced To 9 Years In Prison For Possessing Methamphetamine For Distribution
FRESNO, Calif. - Jesus Manuel Peraza Ruiz, 56, of Bakersfield, Calif. was sentenced Monday by United States District Judge Lawrence J. O'Neill to nine years in prison for possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute. United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge John J. Martin announced the sentencing.
According to court documents, a vehicle driven by Ruiz was stopped in Kern County, Calif., and a narcotics detection dog alerted to six packages of methamphetamine inside a hidden compartment. The methamphetamine weighed 5.8 pounds and subsequent Drug Enforcement Administration laboratory tests determined it was 98.8 percent pure.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’(ICE) Homeland Security (HSI), the Bakersfield Police Department, the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, and the Kern County Probation Department. Assistant United States Attorney Laurel J. Montoya prosecuted the case.
Ruiz’s co-defendants, Baltazar Garcia, Adam Vega and Robert Canchola, were previously sentenced by Judge O’Neill. Garcia was sentenced to 10 years in prison, Vega to eight years in prison, and Canchola to five years and 10 months in prison.
