Opiate Trafficking
A Victorville-based doctor was arrested February 21 on federal charges of illegally selling prescriptions without a legitimate medical purpose, after apparently having done so to undercover operatives who visited his High Desert medical office.
Wendell Mark Street, 66, was arrested Wednesday morning without incident at his Las Vegas residence by special agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration. Street’s arrest was the result of a 10-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury on February 9. The indictment charges Street with five counts of illegally distributing the painkiller oxycodone and five counts of illegally distributing the tranquilizer alprazolam (often sold under the brand name Xanax). Street allegedly issued the prescriptions in 2013 in exchange for cash “while acting and intending to act outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Street allegedly wrote prescriptions without performing any physical examinations in exchange for $200 to $300 in cash from each of two undercover investigators with the California Medical Board and an informant. The five counts related to illegal distribution of oxycodone each carry a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. The five counts related to alprazolam each carry a sentence of up to five years in prison.
During the investigation into Street, investigators executed a search warrant at his Victorville office in 2014. Street surrendered his California medical license in 2016. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Victoria A. Degtyareva of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.

Identity Theft
Case No. 151702358
A 41-year-old San Bernardino woman has been arrested and charged with violations of Penal Code 475 – possession of forged checks, and Penal Code 530.5 – identity theft.
On December 19, 2017, at approximately 5:00 p.m., Deputy K. Hogue, from the sheriff’s central station, Loma Linda patrol, went to the 25000 block of Carrol Court for a call that a community mailbox had been broken into. Through investigation deputy Hogue discovered earlier that day a Hispanic female attempted to cash a fraudulent check at a Loma Linda credit union. The check was one of many checks stolen from the community mailbox.
Detective David Rayenhartz took over the investigation and was able to identify the Hispanic female as Teresa Serna. On February 16, 2018, detectives contacted Serna at her residence in the 2300 block of Sepulveda Avenue in San Bernardino. Detectives took Serna into custody and served a search warrant at the residence. During the search, detectives located additional computers, identifications, credit cards and bank information depicting potential victim’s names. Serna was arrested and booked at the Central Detention Center on the forged check and identity theft charges.

Child Pornography
Jonathan Michael Ramos, 69, a Fontana resident with a chiropractic office in Ontario, was arrested Thursday February 8 on suspicion of possessing and on-line distribution of child pornography.
Having grounds, based on having traced an IP address to Ramos’ home, authorities  obtained a search warrant and upon serving it at his residence in the 15000 block of Primrose Court found what they say is evidence to justify an arrest.

Bilking Immigrants
An Upland man was arrested by Azusa Police on February 8 on suspicion of bilking immigrants in the Southland through a fraudulent immigration services business, which in Spanish is referred to as a notorio.
Deputy District Attorneys Ryann Gerber Jorban and Leonard Torrealba of the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Consumer Protection Division said Augusto “Tito” Gonzalez De La Cruz, 57, scammed 15 victims out of $183,300 by offering immigration services they never received between May 1, 2015, and January 26, 2018. Gonzalez De La Cruz was charged with 20 felonies on February 9.
He allegedly made false promises that included expediting the processing of visas, resident alien cards and citizenship petitions, prosecutors said.

Animal Cruelty
Lucio Cota Lopez, 34 of Fontana has been charged with felony animal cruelty. According to the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office, Lopez became upset with a kitten that came into his apartment, upon which he placed the animal in his freezer. Thereafter he crushed it and then threw it from a balcony window.
Lopez was arranged on the charge February 9.

Vehicle Theft
Two Riverside County residents and their associate from Arizona have been arrested and charged with grand theft auto and possession of stolen property after the two former individuals absconded with a vehicle from Temucla.
Stephanie Snyder, 27 years old from Wildomar and Andrew Hernandez, 27 years old from Lake Elsinore, while in the parking lot to the Walmart in Temecula found a key ring. Using the keyless remote, they were able to locate the victim’s parked car and drove it to Lake Havasu City, Arizona where they picked up their friend, Zandra Gibson. The threesome spent several days in Laughlin, Nevada. In Needles, sheriff’s deputy Dave Wagner took notice of the vehicle near the intersection of J Street and Broadway, and determined it was stolen. He stopped the vehicle, which was being driven by Stephanie Snyder, after it began traveling eastbound on the Interstate 40 freeway, and arrested the occupants.
An investigation revealed that Snyder and Hernandez found the keys to the stolen car.
Snyder and Hernandez were booked into the Colorado River Station Jail for vehicle theft with bail amounts of $50,000. Gibson was booked for possession of stolen property with a bail amount of $25,000.
The vehicle was returned to the registered owner in Murrieta.

Endangering Children
The sheriff’s department early this month swooped in on a domestic situation in which two children were allegedly being exposed to a hazardous circumstance.
On Wednesday, February 7, 2018, at approximately 2:30 p.m., the Yucca Valley Multiple Enforcement Team, which counts sheriff’s deputies Efrain Herrera and Robert Moreno of the problem oriented policing detail among its members, served a search warrant in the 3200 block of Rockwood Road in Joshua Tree. The search turned up a loaded firearm, a large amount of methamphetamine, drug paraphernalia, and other illegal weapons. Jesse Jimenez and Kellye Rumney were contacted at the residence. Jimenez was arrested for possession of narcotics for sale and being a felon in possession of a loaded firearm. Rumney had two small children living at the residence and was arrested for child endangerment.
Jimenez was booked into the Morongo Basin Jail and is being held on $50,000 bail. Rumney was also booked at the Morongo Basin Jail and is being held on $100,000 bail.

Pimping & Pandering
Three young adults making their way in the world by trafficking in nubile flesh have been arrested.
On Tuesday, February 6, 2018, investigators from the San Bernardino County Human Trafficking Task Force were conducting a motel operation in the 200 block of Hospitality Lane. Two females were contacted and provided services. While conducting the initial investigation, other task force members initiated contact with four additional subjects, also believed to be involved in Human Trafficking. All four subjects were detained and transported to the San Bernardino Police Station. Three of those individuals were Denzel Freeman, a 21-year-old man from Modesto; William Sisco, a 22-year-old man from Modesto; and  Halen Hale, an 18-year-old woman from Modesto. The fourth individual was an 18-year-old woman from Modesto who has been characterized as a victim and her name was not released. Through additional interviews and investigation, investigators were able to determine that Freeman and Sisco were involved in pimping and pandering the victim and Hale was also involved in the pandering of the victim.