UT. Police seize about $500,000 in meth from Mexican drug cartel

Police seize about $500,000 in meth from Mexican drug cartel

By Hunter Schwarz and Sam Penrod
February 12th, 2012 @ 9:55pm

SALT LAKE CITY — Approximatley half a million dollars in high quality methamphetamine from a Mexican drug cartel was confiscated by the Drug Enforcement Agency over the weekend.

The bust began Friday night with a car on I-15 and 3300 South and led the Drug Enforcement Agency to a gated community in Emigration Canyon.

"It's a significant case, an international case with long-reaching tentacles from the East Coast to the West Coast," said Frank Smith, assistant special agent to the DEA. "All of these drugs were coming to Utah."

In addition to the 25 pounds of methamphetamine, weapons, marijuana and $100,000 were also confiscated.

"Weapons, money and drugs, they all go together, these are high quality weapons especially the long guns," Smith said.

Smith said it was, perhaps the "most meth that's ever been seized in Utah," figuring that after it was cut and sold on the street, it would be worth about $2 million. He thanked the efforts of state, local and federal counterparts in the case. The case is still ongoing, but Smith said it was a "significant blow to Mexican drug cartels in Salt Lake."

The DEA has not released the number of people arrested or their identities.

Police seize about $500,000 in meth from Mexican drug cartel | ksl.com