WEST JORDAN, Utah -- West Jordan Police announced a major drug bust Friday morning.
Officers seized $30,000 worth of THC cartridges, the active ingredient in marijuana produced to be used in vaporizers as well as $57,000 in cash.
Police say the seizure followed months of investigating and led to the arrest of the leader of the group believed to have been distributing the drugs.
They arrested Juan Cruze Castruita, and say he ran a drug distributing ring that called themselves the "Polo Ghetto Boys."
"It was over $50,000 in cash and the THC oil that was recovered," West Jordan Police Sgt. J.C. Holt said. "Huge amount of THC oil, to the tune of a million hits on a vape pen."
Investigators had been watching Castruita and following his movements.
"We also learned in investigating and believe he was utilizing and using a social media platform, Snapchat, to push the drugs, possibly utilizing juveniles," Sgt. Holt said.
Police also determined Castruita was involved in two major incidents in 2018.
"One of the cases involved a drive by shooting where a woman was shot in the head and killed," Sgt. Holt said. "Another one involved an aggravated robbery of a 16-year-old juvenile who was beaten severely by the buttstock of a rifle."
Police are following up on how Castruita was able to use the popular app used mostly by young people.
"With the problems that the school districts are having with vape pens in their school, this stuff could be easily used with all those vape pens," Sgt. Holt said.
No charges have been filed yet.
The Unified Police Department was the investigating agency for the two violent crimes Castruita is believed to have been involved in, and those investigations have been assigned to the District Attorney's Office.
