Bay Area 3-month-old baby rescued during bust of fentanyl lab, deputies say
Authorities in Alameda County said they rescued a 3-month-old baby girl and arrested six people during the bust of an alleged fentanyl trafficking organization based out of East Oakland last month.
On Wednesday, the Alameda County Sheriff's Office , which was dubbed "Operation Bad Bunny."
The bust stemmed from an investigation that was launched back in January, after four people were arrested and 30 kilograms of fentanyl were seized during an operation in East Oakland. Following the operation, deputies said a father and his adult son filled the void for the group and began selling fentanyl throughout the Bay Area.
On June 12, the Alameda County Narcotics Task Force, the sheriff's office and the California Highway Patrol served search warrants at multiple East Oakland locations.
As authorities attempted to serve a warrant at a home on the 1400 block of 65th Avenue, deputies said they located three men who fled on foot. The male suspects were apprehended a short time later.
Authorities then entered the 1,000 square foot home. Once inside, they noticed a strong chemical odor and found a woman with her three-month-old daughter in a bedroom. The woman was detained.
"Detectives opened the door to a rear bedroom and were immediately overwhelmed by the strong chemical odors," the sheriff's office said in a statement.
With safety equipment and respirators, the task force processed evidence in the bedroom, determining the room was turned into a fentanyl manufacturing lab. Acetone drums, containers of mannitol, mechanical presses and other items commonly used to mix with fentanyl were found.
Fentanyl powder and residue was also found throuhgout the room and in parts of the kitchen, deputies said. One of the presses was also found with a freshly pressed brick of fentanyl.
Authorities requested emergency medical services to transport the baby to Children's Hospital to evaluate her for fentanyl exposure. Hospital staff told detectives that the infant had fentanyl in her bloodstream.
Child Protective Services later took protective custody of the infant. Deputies said she remains in protective custody as of Wednesday.
The four adults found at the location were booked into the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin for possession with intent to sell along with child endangerment.
Authorities also served a warrant at an apartment building on Loma Vista Avenue. As they attempted to contact the people inside an apartment, deputies said the occupants threw a bag out of the window containing three one kilogram bricks of fentanyl.
Two men were arrested at the second location and were booked into the Santa Rita Jail on suspicion of various felonies.
Deputies said they seized a total of more than 21 kilograms of fentanyl, one handgun and $15,553 in cash during the operation.
The sheriff's office did not release the suspects' names.
