San Diego University Drug Bust
SAN DIEGO, Calif. (AP) — An undercover drug probe focused on San Diego State University and some of its fraternities has led to arrests of 96 people, including 75 students, authorities said Tuesday.Eighteen of the students were arrested Tuesday when nine search warrants were executed at various locations including fraternities, said Jesse Rodriguez, San Diego County assistant district attorney.
During the probe investigators discovered that in some fraternities most members were aware of “organized drug dealing occurring from the fraternity houses by its members,” the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration said in a statement.
“Undercover agents purchased cocaine from fraternity members and confirmed that a hierarchy existed for the purpose of selling drugs for money,” the DEA said.
Authorities said they found drugs being moved in resale quantities.
“We’re talking about trafficking,” Stephen Weber, SDSU president, told a news conference.
The district attorney’s office said search warrants were served in San Diego and suburban La Mesa, including the Theta Chi fraternity house and several apartments.
A member of Theta Chi sent out a mass text message to his “faithful customers” stating that he and his “associates” would be unable to sell cocaine while they were in Las Vegas over one weekend, according to the DEA. The text promoted a cocaine “sale” and listed the reduced prices.
Dale Taylor, national executive director of Theta Chi, said he was “obviously shocked and saddened” by the allegations.
Theta Chi has prohibited the San Diego chapter from group activities like parties or sports activities and will investigate additional disciplinary measures, up to expulsion of members or the entire chapter.
The San Diego chapter was founded 61 years ago and has 65 members. It recently purchased two small pieces of land where raided Tuesday and planned to build a new house there.
“There were on the upswing,” Taylor said. “They had improved their recruitment. They were trying to raise money for a new house.”
Kerry Steigerwalt, senior managing partner of Kerry Steigerwalt’s Pacific Law Center in La Jolla, a large firm of criminal defense attorneys, said the fraternity members arrested Tuesday could face prosecution for gang crimes both because of their association with the fraternities and because one of the non-students arrested in the sting is a documented Los Angeles gang member.
Steigerwalt said if prosecutors can show that some of the individuals arrested were associated with that gang member, Omar Castaneda, those individuals could find themselves charged with gang crimes.
“Under the gang statute, they don’t have to be members of the gang. All they have to do is be in close association with a gang member who is participating in activity to ultimately benefit the gang,” Steigerwalt said. “I gotta tell you, it would not surprise me if gang enhancements are charged.”
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