Southern California man pleads guilty to transporting 14 tons of pot; sentencing set for April
By APWednesday, January 20, 2010
Calif. man pleads guilty to hauling 14 tons of pot
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Sentencing is set for April 12 for a Southern California man who was pulled over driving a big rig containing 14 tons of marijuana.
Federal court records show 51-year-old Angel Guillen Raya of Ontario, in San Bernardino County, pleaded guilty this week to transporting the marijuana with the intent to distribute it.
Raya was driving a big rig on Interstate 15 south of Temecula in August when he was pulled over for making an unsafe lane change.
Court records say a drug-sniffing dog alerted deputies to the presence of drugs. Deputies opened the trailer and found pallets of marijuana stacked to the ceiling.
Authorities say the pot seizure was the largest in Riverside County history.
A U.S. attorney’s office spokesman says no one else has been charged in the case, but an investigation into the source of the marijuana is ongoing.
Information from: The Press-Enterprise, www.pe.com
