A seven month investigation by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office netted a massive meth bust including assault weapons, cash, and the arrest of a D.O.C. officer.
According to the Sheriff's office, detectives followed a car that was under surveillance and made a routine traffic stop near 83rd avenue and Indian School. In a search of the vehicle detectives found 4 pounds of pure meth inside a hidden compartment.
The two people inside the vehicle were taken into custody by the detectives. The driver of the vehicle, Domingo Ruiz, was determined to be an illegal alien by deputies.
The Sheriff's investigation started when an anonymous tip came in saying that illegal drug activity was happening in the area. A total of 5 houses in the west Valley were put under surveillance for the investigation. Search warrants were executed on Tuesday at each of the houses. One house contained an additional 16 pounds of meth. Also seized from the houses were weapons including AK-47s, shotguns and pistols, scales, over $200,000 in cash and six vehicles. According to detectives two of the vehicles were customized so that they could hide drugs in hidden compartments. The estimated street value of the methamphetamine seized during the traffic stop and the house searches is about $2 million. Detectives say law enforcement in other states also confiscated 35 pounds of meth, 12 pounds of cocaine and another $200,000 in cash allegedly connected to the Ruiz family. They believe that the drugs were run through Nogales and Tucson before being distibuted to other states via Maricopa County. In all six people have been taken into custody, all relatives of Domingo Ruiz. One of the arrested relatives, the son of Domingo named Noe Ruiz, is a Department of Corrections officer at the Lewis Prison Complex in Buckeye, Arizona.
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