(FOX40.COM) — A year-long undercover operation known as ‘Operation Crystal River’ recently led to the dismantling of a major statewide drug trafficking ring that was based in Yuba County.
• Video Above: How deadly is fentanyl?
The investigation began in July of 2024, according to the Yuba County Sheriff’s Office. At the time, law enforcement was looking into Jose Garcia-Avalos of Yuba City, who is accused of being “a key distributor of large quantities of controlled substances throughout Yuba County and across California.”
A massive drug bust in Northern California known as ‘Operation Crystal River’ resulted in 14 arrests and the seizure of more than 500 pounds of drugs./YCSO
‘The light in everyone’s life’: 8-year-old girl killed in Stockton mass shooting identified
After a year of investigation, YCSO said it uncovered multiple drug trafficking organizations tied to Garcia Avalos. According to YCSO, the organizations were linked to the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
In October 2025, law enforcement executed multiple federal search warrants simultaneously across Yuba, Sutter, and Butte counties. This operation resulted in the arrest of 14 individuals on federal drug trafficking charges.
Fairfield police arrest man accused of firing several random gunshots in roadway
Operation Crystal River arrests
• Jose Garcia-Avalos, 36, of Yuba City
• Octavio Hinojosa-Guzman, 43, of Yuba City
• Elmer Montiel-Romero, 21, of Yuba City
• Hector De Jesus, Mejia-Velasquez, 25, of Yuba City
• Juan Munoz-Guzman, 28, of Yuba City
• Leonel Abrego, 38, of Live Oak
• Lloyd Steve Lister, 53, of Yuba City
• Lyle Wayne Cooper, 53, of Olivehurst
• Brandi Emerson, 32, of Marysville
• Leon James Whiteley, 50, of Olivehurst
• Brian Sedgwick, 63, of Marysville
• Vanessa Flores-Gomez, 27, of Marysville
• Jessica Pack, 36, of Weaverville
• Coy Mobley, 53, of Weaverville
At the conclusion of the investigation, law enforcement seized more than 500 pounds of
methamphetamine and about 135,000 counterfeit M-30 Oxycodone pills
containing fentanyl, according to YCSO.
Investigators said they also found and dismantled a methamphetamine
conversion laboratory operating in Southern California.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40 News.