FBI Drug Raid Hits San Jose Tattoo Parlor – Possession, Sales and Transportation of Methamphetamines (CA Health and Safety Code 11377, 11378, 11379)

The FBI says that they have arrested approximately 20 people in an early morning drug bust near 10^th and Williams (near campus).  Residents living nearby said that they never even noticed the tattoo parlor that is located on the 2^nd floor of the building.  However, law enforcement officials with the FBI claim to have been working on the case for at least 2 years, and that everyone arrested was also involved in a gang that kept this large drug operation going.  Agents swept the business and found what they referred to as a ‘significant amount’ of methamphetamine and weapons, which have now all been seized.

The California Health and Safety Code 11377, 11378, and 11379 refer to the possession, sale, and transportation of methamphetamine, a drug considered to be a controlled, and thus illegal without a prescription, substance.  Some folks are familiar with its legal use for the treatment of ADHD.  What the 20 persons arrested this morning have likely been charged with is the transportation and sale of methamphetamines (CA HSC 11379).  This portion of the law makes it a crime to sell, transport, administer, or even give away methamphetamines.  If convicted, any of the 20 arrested could face up to 9 years in state prison.  Additionally, if prosecutors can prove that they were all members of a gang, then California gang enhancements could apply, significantly lengthening the sentence that they may serve.  They could also be charged with possession and/or possessing a controlled substance for the purposes of selling it, all of which could add a number of years to original penalties.