BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — Three men were arrested after a joint D.E.A. operation seized illegal drugs and fireworks in East Bakersfield.
The Bakersfield Police Department says Narcotics Detectives, Drug Enforcement Administration Agents, and California Highway Patrol Officers assigned to a D.E.A. task force received multiple complaints about two illegal marijuana dispensaries operating in East Bakersfield.
Police say the dispensaries were located in the 500 block of East California Avenue near a church.
In March 2026, B.P.D. Narcotics Detectives found a business operating at 522 East California Avenue.
Police say the building was posted as uninhabitable by Bakersfield Code Enforcement but had resumed operation as an illegal marijuana dispensary.
B.P.D. Vice Detectives and The Bakersfield Fire Department Arson Investigators also found illegal fireworks were being sold at 518 East California Avenue.
Investigators served search warrants at both locations.
On July 2, 38-year-old Richard Moran, 22-year-old Frankee Apodaca, and 27-year-old Philip Padilla were arrested on multiple narcotics-related charges.