ICE puts hold on 3 arrested in huge Fresno meth bust

Three men are being held on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement order in Fresno County Jail after a raid launched by police and the federal Drug Enforcement Agency seized nearly 70 pounds of methamphetamine.

The drugs were confiscated during a traffic stop Thursday and at a trailer court Friday in Dinuba. Fresno police Chief Jerry Dyer said Friday that the drugs were linked to a drug cartel based in the Mexican state of Michoacán.

The men were identified Monday as Francisco Rafael Gonzalez Navaro, 23, Rogelio Ponce Galvan, 25, and Juan Gutierrez Lopez, 37. Gutierrez Lopez, 37, was initially identified as Alfonso Ortega Cruz, 38. Ponce Galvan was initially identified as Ponce Orelio Galvan, 24, and Gonzalez Navaro’s age was first given as 24.

This story was originally published March 18, 2019 at 12:51 PM.