Tulare County Methamphetamine Trafficker Sentenced

FRESNO, CA—United States District Judge Anthony W. Ishii sentenced Adrian Negrete Hernandez, 26, of Terra Bella, today to seven years and three months in prison for conspiring to distribute and possessing with intent to distribute methamphetamine and possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.

“This case stems from a two-year Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force wiretap investigation that resulted in five indictments and the conviction of 13 defendants,” U.S. Attorney Wagner said. “The multi-agency investigation led to the dismantling of a drug trafficking organization based in the small farming communities of Terra Bella and Porterville.”

According to court documents, Negrete was a long-time methamphetamine supplier in Terra Bella, and he sold the drug primarily to street-level dealers in Terra Bella and Porterville. At his arrest, Negrete possessed a 9-millimeter Beretta pistol, a Kimber rifle with scope, a Savage rifle with scope, and $43,311 in cash, representing the proceeds of his drug trafficking activities.

The OCDETF investigation was conducted by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Southern Tri-County High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force, Tulare and Kern County Sheriff’s Offices, and Bakersfield Police Department, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service, Fresno Police Department, Tulare Police Department, and the Porterville Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen A. Escobar prosecuted the case.