Police: Woman brings heroin to cousin's heroin bust
Traffic stop leads to three arrests.

By JON CASSIDY
The Orange County Register
Tuesday, April 14, 2009

SEAL BEACH - It was a routine traffic stop, but Jose Luis Castillo Sanchez seemed nervous, police thought. He didn't speak English and only had a Mexican driver's license, according to a search warrant obtained by the Seal Beach police.

When the driver's license turned out to be phony, police searched the vehicle, and found heroin, balloons and cash, according to the warrant.

As a police dog sniffed the car, a woman walked up wanting to know why they were arresting her cousin. Her name was Alma Estrada, she said, and her cousin had called to say he was being arrested.

Police asked her how she got there, and she pointed to a Jeep Cherokee across the street, and said her boyfriend Tony brought her, according to the warrant. Police asked to search the Jeep.

"Tony" gave his permission, police said, but made sure to point out that the black purse in the front seat wasn't his. So they asked for and received permission from Estrada to search the purse, according to the search warrant.

The contents of the Jeep: $1,701 in cash and four cell phones in the center console and a rolled-up white paper bag under the rear seat containing what appeared to police to be methamphetamine.

The contents of the purse: $1,706 in cash, two cell phones and 86 small balloons of heroin, police allege.

Castillo has been charged with two felony drug charges and two misdemeanors related to misidentifying himself.

All three have been charged with felony drug counts.

Contact the writer: jcassidy@ocregister.com or 714-445-6694

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