Mexican National Who Is Key Drug Trafficking Target Indicted On High Desert Meth Lab Related Charges

RIVERSIDE, Calif - A Mexican national who was previously designated as an important target because of his links to international drug trafficking was indicted today by a federal grand jury on narcotics charges related to a meth lab in Hesperia where multiple pounds of methamphetamine were seized. The indictment is the result of an ongoing investigation being conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration.
 
Adrian Ulises Garcia-Ruiz, 37, a native of Michoacán, Mexico was arrested at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport on September 20, the day after prosecutors at the United States Attorney’s Office filed a criminal complaint against him. A federal Magistrate Judge in Dallas detained Garcia-Ruiz, and he currently is being transported to Southern California by the United States Marshals Service. Once Garcia-Ruiz arrives in Southern California, he will be arraigned on a two-count indictment that alleges he supplied liquid methamphetamine that was turned into crystal meth at the San Bernardino County drug lab. The indictment names a second defendant - Carlos Miguel Gallardo-Valdovinos, also a Mexican national - who allegedly converted the narcotics into crystalline form.
           
According to the indictment, Garcia-Ruiz coordinated shipments of liquid methamphetamine into the United States, where it was converted into crystalline form for distribution. Gallardo-Valdovinos allegedly purchased acetone which he used to convert the liquid methamphetamine into crystalline form at the Hesperia lab. In May 2014, authorities executed a search warrant at the Hesperia drug lab, where they seized approximately six gallons of liquid methamphetamine, more than nine pounds of crystal methamphetamine and $60,000 in U.S. currency.
           
The indictment links Garcia-Ruiz to Gallardo-Valdovinos through a series of intercepted communications, some of which indicate that Gallardo-Valdovinos had received six gallons of methamphetamine prior to the seizure.
           
Garcia-Ruiz had been placed on the Consolidated Priority Organization (CPOT) List by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force. The CPOT list targets those who participate in the “command and control” of the most prolific international drug trafficking and money laundering organizations.
           
           
The indictment charges Garcia-Ruiz and Gallardo-Valdovinos with two counts: conspiracy to manufacture, possess with intent to distribute, and distribute methamphetamine; and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Each count carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a statutory maximum sentence of life.
                       
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tritia L. Yuen and Special Assistant United States Attorney Paul Levers of the Riverside Branch.