Suspects held on $2M bail after Costa Mesa traffic stop yields 27 pounds of methamphetamine

Two men are being held in an Orange County jail on $2 million bail after a traffic stop in Costa Mesa Friday led to the recovery of 27 pounds of methamphetamine and a large, but unspecified, amount of cash, police say.

Jorge Osuna-Romero, 26, of La Habra, and Ulixes Flores, 26, of La Habra Heights were arrested Friday after an officer pulled over their vehicle for speeding, Costa Mesa Police Department spokeswoman Roxi Fyad confirmed Tuesday.

The traffic stop led to a DUI investigation and, ultimately, the execution of a search warrant at their respective residences that allegedly turned up cocaine, fentanyl and a sizeable amount of marijuana.

Costa Mesa police reported the incident began Friday at around 5 p.m., when an officer on motorcycle on patrol noticed a vehicle speeding and conducted a traffic stop. Fyad would not say exactly where the incident occurred but confirmed it happened inside city limits.

During a traffic stop and subsequent execution of a search warrant Friday, Costa Mesa police officers reported seizing 27 pounds of methamphetamine, 40 pounds of marijuana, one kilogram of cocaine and 1,000 fentanyl pills.

(Courtesy of Costa Mesa Police Department)

During the stop, the officer reportedly observed an open alcoholic beverage container inside and began a DUI investigation.

CMPD’s K9 unit arrived on scene to assist the officer. K9 Bodi conducted a free-air sniff of the vehicle to detect contraband and was alerted to the presence of illegal narcotics inside the vehicle, CMPD reported Monday.

When officers checked the vehicle, they discovered 27 pounds of methamphetamine and a lot of cash in the vehicle, the department reported. Detectives were notified and obtained a search warrant for the homes of the driver and passenger.

Those searches recovered an additional kilogram of cocaine, 1,000 fentanyl pills and 40 pounds of marijuana, according to the department.

An online prison inmate locator maintained by the Orange County Sheriff’s Department indicated Osuna-Romero, whose occupation was listed as cook, was being held in the county’s Theo Lacy Facility on $2-million bail.

Court records show Osuna-Romero faces felony counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell and for the sale or transport of a controlled substance with felony enhancements for each involving methamphetamine in excess of 25 pounds.

The inmate locator indicated that Flores, an electrician, was also being held on $2-million bail in the same facility and that both suspects were due to appear in court on Tuesday for an arraignment in custody, though only Osuna-Romero is named in a criminal complaint filed Tuesday by the Orange County district attorney’s office.

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