CA- 6 people found shot to death in remote desert area of El Mirage - Jan 2024 *ARRESTS*

[Jo in Calif]

Photos of the 5 arrested.

‘Dispute over marijuana' may have led to murders of 6 people in California desert, officials say

Arrests have been made in the discovery of six people found dead on a dirt road in the high desert of San Bernardino County north of Los Angeles.

www.nbcsandiego.com

 

[MassGuy]

BREAKING: As we await more information on the arrests in the 6 bodies found in El Mirage, this board of arrestees has been put up ahead of a scheduled press conference @KFIAM640

https://x.com/blaketroli/status/1752132277679821020?s=46&t=1LeaTK_fug_ONwN11qOyUw

 

[Herat]

Two sets of brothers, one set with very similar looks, with very confusing similar names.

All hispanic names. Locals from Adelanto and nearby Apple Valley.

 

[katydid23]

Presser on NOW

 

[Recidivist]

It was over marijuana!

 

[katydid23]

5 of the 6 have been identified
[All local Hispanic males in their 30's]

Took days for autopsies---all were shot, 4 were burned also

Appears to be a conflict involving marijuana

5 suspects arrested
all males Hispanics from Adelanto or Apple Valley area

In custody, no bail

Q:is it gang related?/
DA:
"interesting question -no comment if cartel or not yet"


Q: Was it legal pot grows? /

Deputy Sheriff:
"411 search warrants in last year/ 370 million dollar confiscated in Shadow Mt area/illicit marijuana /honey pots"

"By allowing black market to flourish we have brought in cartel activity creating homicides and violence"

"These grows are trashing our beautiful deserts and stealing our water resources"

Q: is it fair to call this organised crime?
"factually I cannot tell you that, at this time, but it certainly resembles something like that"

 

[Herat]

KTLA reports the dark blue SUV ( older model Chevy Blazer) has Oregon plates.

 

[Herat]

Legalizing marijuana was one thing. The problem was the State trying to create a financial windfall out of it and taxing it so heavily that illegal harvesting became very profitable, with great incentive to also grow to bulk ship to other states where it is and isn't legal. Legal pot growers can't compete.

Now it's just freakin' out of control.

 

[Recidivist]

Legalizing marijuana was one thing. The problem was the State trying to create a financial windfall out of it and taxing it so heavily that illegal harvesting became very profitable, with great incentive to also grow to bulk ship to other states where it is and isn't legal. Legal pot growers can't compete.

Now it's just freakin' out of control.

I completely agree. The taxes are close to 50 percent for the consumer. They tax the growers. And on top of that all the fees and regulations, especially in Calif

 

[Cedars]

Here's a link to an edited version of the press conference:

Sheriff: Mojave Desert massacre connected to dispute over marijuana

The brutal slaying of six men at a remote dirt crossroads in San Bernardino County likely stemmed from a dispute over marijuana, investigators revealed on Monday in their first update since last we…

www.yourcentralvalley.com

With regards to the 911 call, that was one of the victims! Unfortunately he died before LE could arrive.

Perhaps he was able to tell 911 who were the shooters.

IIRC the perps were arrested together at a compound, where there were 8 weapons. Very nerve-racking for police...

JMO

 

[Cedars]

I completely agree. The taxes are close to 50 percent for the consumer. They tax the growers. And on top of that all the fees and regulations, especially in Calif

So of course, US consumers will buy on the black market to save a few bucks, never mind the consequences.

JMO

 

[MadMcGoo]

Sheriff: Mojave Desert massacre stemmed from dispute over marijuana

The brutal slaying of six men at a remote dirt crossroads in San Bernardino County likely stemmed from a dispute over marijuana, investigators revealed on Monday in their first update since last we…

ktla.com

All of the victims had been shot and four were also burned, Dicus confirmed at a news conference Monday afternoon. Three of the victims have been identified, they are:

• Baldemar Mondragon-Albarran, 34, of Adelanto
• Franklin Noel Bonilla, 22, of Hisperia
• Kevin Dariel Bonilla, 25, of Hisperia

Authorities say a fourth victim is a 45-year-old Hispanic man, they’re waiting to release his identity pending notification of next of kin. The remaining two victims were only identified as Hispanic males.

[…]

The five suspects who were arrested are:

• Toniel Baez-Duarte, 34, of Apple Valley.
• Mateo Baez-Duarte, 24, of Apple Valley
• Jose Nicolas Hernandez-Sarabia, 33, of Adelanto
• Jose Gregorio Hernandez-Sarabia, 34, of Adelanto
• Jose Manuel Burgos Parra, 26, of Adelanto

 

[Herat]

Looks like another set of brothers are victims.

 

[Knox]

I'm surprised the arrests happened so quickly.

 

[RickshawFan]

Whoever the poster was ^^^^ who insisted this was marijuana-related is a GENIUS. I would never have guessed. I mean, how do you grow MJ out in that nothing-desert? Where is there any water at all?

 

[Herat]

Whoever the poster was ^^^^ who insisted this was marijuana-related is a GENIUS. I would never have guessed. I mean, how do you grow MJ out in that nothing-desert? Where is there any water at all?

Take a closer look at the map. There are rectangular enclosures with rows of greenhouses showing grey plastic covers with semicircular supports. Surrounding them are trailers where people live. The grow houses steal water from other peoples water lines, trucks, and wells.

This has been openly going on since 2021, but impossible to shut down. It is truly a cancer on the earth.

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

So of course, US consumers will buy on the black market to save a few bucks, never mind the consequences.

JMO

Legalizing marijuana was one thing. The problem was the State trying to create a financial windfall out of it and taxing it so heavily that illegal harvesting became very profitable, with great incentive to also grow to bulk ship to other states where it is and isn't legal. Legal pot growers can't compete.

Now it's just freakin' out of

I’m not understanding. Legal marijuana dispensaries are everywhere. Like, one on every block on the commercial streets in my California neighborhood. I have to assume they’re sourcing their products from legal grow ops and have the consumer demand to stay open. How would that *increase* the demand for illegal marijuana? My assumption would be the demand is coming from consumers in other states.

From the consumer side in states with legal marijuana, I would hope it’s only a small (stupid) minority who think it is worthwhile to get involved in the illegal drug trade by buying marijuana produced and/or distributed by cartels, just to save a few dollars. Legal marijuana isn’t expensive to begin with. How many are willing to risk their lives to save tens of dollars?

 

[BlaiseFinlay]

I’m not understanding. Legal marijuana dispensaries are everywhere. Like, one on every block on the commercial streets in my California neighborhood. I have to assume they’re sourcing their products from legal grow ops and have the consumer demand to stay open. How would that *increase* the demand for illegal marijuana? My assumption would be the demand is coming from consumers in other states.

From the consumer side in states with legal marijuana, I would hope it’s only a small (stupid) minority who think it is worthwhile to get involved in the illegal drug trade by buying marijuana produced and/or distributed by cartels, just to save a few dollars. Legal marijuana isn’t expensive to begin with. How many are willing to risk their lives to save tens of dollars?

Okay, I just read the LA Times article on the topic, and I remain confused. 80% of marijuana sold in California is illegal?

I’m not seeing how that is possible or there being any causation between the legalization of marijuana and the proliferation of illegal grow ops in the high desert, unless these illegal grow ops are selling to the legal dispensaries.

In which case, that seems like a solvable problem. You don’t go after all the illegal grow ops, you instead go after the dispensaries. Audit them to determine the source of their product. They have to identify their source, the source has to verify. If the legal grow ops are struggling so much, they’ll be highly motivated to cooperate.

If the 80% stat is based on purchases by consumers rather than dispensaries, then my little bubble of California must be very atypical. Which is certainly possible, California is a big state. I just went onto Yelp and counted twenty marijuana dispensaries within one mile of me. (Obviously, I don’t think that’s a typical number of dispensaries for the average California neighborhood…we’re clearly special in that regard…but I nonetheless think it is indicative of the consumer demand for legal marijuana. Rents are high here.)

 

[Dawookie]

Whoever the poster was ^^^^ who insisted this was marijuana-related is a GENIUS. I would never have guessed. I mean, how do you grow MJ out in that nothing-desert? Where is there any water at all?

It's simple, they steal the water from hydrants or wells.

 

[Cryptic]

Whoever the poster was ^^^^ who insisted this was marijuana-related is a GENIUS. I would never have guessed. I mean, how do you grow MJ out in that nothing-desert? Where is there any water at all?

My guess is that they combine stolen water with variations of "drip irrigation".

Going into farming trivia....and I doubt the marijuana growers know or care, but....

The Israelis pioneered alot of dry desert farming techniques in the 1960s. The techniques included plastic sheeting at ground level to keep moisture in, carefully controlled waterings directly to the roots, and innovative uses of plastic sheeting and wire meshes to create efficient dew collecting mini green houses. Israeli techniques then got passed to all over.

Certain US Indian tribes also did the same thing with dry farming. They just did not have plastic sheeting and wire mesh in the olde days. But.... the ideas were the same: careful waterings at select times to maximize efficiency, care use of rocks etc. for moisture retention, careful selection of garden site to take advantage of any retained water underground after rains.