WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 (UPI) -- The Drug Enforcement Administration said Thursday an international operation has erased a major source of methamphetamine materials coming in from Canada.
The joint U.S.-Canadian operation was conducted by the DEA and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The DEA said the 17-month investigation, "Operation Brain Drain," eliminated the most significant source of ephedrine, a methamphetamine precursor, from Canada to the United States.
The operation targeted the Armando Solis meth manufacturing and trafficking organization in central California, which has Mexican ties. The group operated throughout the Western and Central United States.
The DEA said the investigation also focused on the Richie Mishal drug organization, which distributed steroids and other drugs throughout the United States.
The DEA said the operation yielded 90 arrests, including five major traffickers, 92.6 pounds of meth, 2,735 pounds of ephedrine powder, and nearly 1.7 million ephedrine pills, 2 kilograms of cocaine, 62 pounds of precursor chemicals, five gallons of meth solution, 27 weapons, 11 vehicles, two large clandestine meth labs, and $3.5 million in Canadian currency.
