On Thursday, May 25th, local, state and federal law enforcement officers teamed up and served search warrants at 55 different locations within Fresno and Tulare Counties.
This marked the culmination of a 100 day undercover operation focused on Norteño gang members committing various crimes. The results were the arrests of 34 people, the seizure of 64 guns and confiscation of narcotics. The drugs included 7 lbs. of Methamphetamine, 26 oz. of Fentanyl and 15 oz. of Cocaine.
Operation Broken Bonds was launched in February in response to a surge in violence in recent years, primarily in the city of Parlier. One of the more notable cases was a murder, which occurred due to mistaken identity.
52 year old Silvano Mendoza of Parlier died on Sunday, June 13th, 2021. Mendoza was a field worker on his way to his job with other co-workers. He was in a car, pulling up to a home on the 13000 block of 9th Street in Parlier when he was shot. During the operation, 26 year old Francisco Munoz of Parlier was arrested for killing Mendoza.
(Mendoza story) https://www.fresnosheriff.org/media-relations/parlier-family-makes-plea-to-help-catch-killer-s.html
Detectives believe some of the people arrested are responsible for other unsolved murders in Parlier. They are working with prosecutors to finalize these investigations and are confident charges will be filed against the suspects in the coming weeks.
The arrests of these men and women is expected to have an immediate effect in lowering violent crime in Fresno County. Their unlawful behavior has disrupted and destroyed many neighborhoods, especially in Parlier. We hope our hard work returns a sense of peace to citizens who deserve to feel safe in their communities.
Felony charges suspects could face, but are not limited to, include: Murder, drug trafficking, gun possession, conspiracy, racketeering, carjacking, robbery and gang enhancements. Prosecutions will take place on both the state and federal levels.
The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office and the Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium (MAGEC) would like to thank several law enforcement agencies for their great assistance throughout this investigation.
Participants included:
- Clovis Police Department
- Fresno Police Department
- Kingsburg Police Department
- Visalia Police Department
- Merced Police Gang Violence Suppression Unit
- Tulare County Sheriff’s Office
- Fresno County District Attorney’s Office
- High Impact Investigation Team
- California Highway Patrol
- California Department of Justice
- California State Parole
- California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
*Avenal State Prison Crisis Response Team 8
*Corcoran State Prison Crisis Response Team 10
*Valley State Prison Chowchilla Crisis Response Team 11
*Salinas Valley State Prison Crisis Response Team 12
*Kern Valley State Prison Crisis Response Team 13
*Tehachapi State Prison Crisis Response Team 15
*Special Service Unit
- Federal Bureau of Investigations
- Drug Enforcement Administration
- Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives
- U.S. Marshals Service
- Homeland Security Investigations
- U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of California
This remains an ongoing investigation. Anyone with information that can help detectives, please contact the Sheriff’s Office at 559-600-3111. You may also contact Valley Crime Stoppers at 559-498-7867 or www.valleycrimestoppers.org You will remain anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward.