A drug enforcement model started by the Folsom Police Department expanded into a 38-agency operation that produced 146 arrests across 14 counties, authorities announced Oct. 22.
Operation Central Valley Blues, a three-day sweep targeting drug trafficking through social media, seized more than 3,286 pounds of narcotics, 43 weapons and $338,222 in cash, according to a joint news release from the El Dorado County District Attorney's Office and Sheriff's Office. The seized drugs carried an estimated street value of $7.4 million, according to STL News.
The operation built on Operation Folsom Blues, originally started by the Folsom Police Department. Federal agencies scaled the local model into a multi-county initiative led by the Drug Enforcement Administration's San Francisco Field Division, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California, the FBI's Sacramento Field Office and the Central Valley California High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force. Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, also participated.
Since July, participating agencies investigated leads from online drug advertisements, including voluntary referrals from Facebook and Instagram. The coordinated enforcement took place during the week of Oct. 6.
As we reported Oct. 22, El Dorado County's local team accounted for 14 of the 146 arrests. The West El Dorado Narcotics Enforcement Team, assisted by Sheriff's Office deputies and the District Attorney's Office, also seized three firearms, about 1.88 pounds of methamphetamine and 34.3 grams of fentanyl during the three-day push.
Regionally, the 232 charges filed included offenses tied to methamphetamine, fentanyl, cocaine and cannabis. Officers recovered 18,542 pills, including 16,136 fentanyl pills. Cannabis made up the bulk of the weight at roughly 3,184 pounds.
"I commend the Folsom Police Department for establishing Operation Folsom Blues and DEA Sacramento for expanding this effort across the region," El Dorado County Sheriff Jeff Leikauf said in the joint release. He added that agencies were "working together with a shared goal: keeping dangerous drugs off our streets …"
El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson said the operation sends a message to drug traffickers that they will be held accountable. Bob P. Beris, special agent in charge of the DEA's San Francisco Field Division, said the coordinated approach shows how shared resources and intelligence can address emerging criminal threats.
CBS Sacramento reported that Meta Vice President and Deputy General Counsel Chris Sonderby said the company removed more than 800 accounts that violated its policies and shared information that helped lead to enforcement actions.
The operation targeted what federal officials described as the "last mile" of drug and firearms trafficking, the point where illegal products reach individual buyers through social media platforms. Residents with information about drug activity can contact the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office.
