The Costa Mesa Police Department was one of just a few local agencies involved in a large investigation into the illegal distribution of opioids beginning in late 2018.

Because of these efforts, a local opioid dealer and his accomplices are facing criminal charges after a major collaborative investigation led by the Federal Department of Justice and a team that included Costa Mesa Police and federal and state law enforcement agencies.

The investigation resulted in the arrest of a Huntington Beach resident indicted for reportedly shipping as many as 2.6 million fentanyl pills nationwide.

Click here to read the press release from the U.S. District Attorney’s Office.

“We are aggressively confronting the opioid crisis through our partnership with law enforcement,” Mayor Katrina Foley said. “Thank you to Costa Mesa police and our law enforcement partners for the excellent work to expose and root out these modern day drug dealers in our community. We will continue to hold these individuals who prey on our residents accountable.”

Costa Mesa Police Capt. Bryan Glass credited his officers for working to stem this major drug crisis.

“We are proud of the work and efforts our officers continuously put towards these types of crimes, which directly affect our community and the nation,” said Costa Mesa Police Capt. Bryan Glass.

In addition to Costa Mesa Police, the case is being investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Western Cyber Crimes Unit, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the United States Marshals Service, the United States Department of State, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation and the Chamberlain Police Department.

This successful investigation is one of the many ways the City of Costa Mesa is holding illegal businesses accountable.

In April of 2019 the City of Costa Mesa filed a lawsuit against the manufacturers and distributors of pain medications who are the root cause behind the national opioid crisis.