A man has been arrested in the San Gabriel Valley and charged with attempting to ship more than a metric ton of methamphetamine to Australia, according to federal authorities.
Jing Tang Li, 32, of El Monte faces federal charges of distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, exporting controlled substances and attempt and conspiracy to export controlled substances, the U.S. attorney's office said Friday.
Last year, U.S. customs officials inspected seven shipments that were to be sent to Australia, according to authorities. The shipping containers were falsely labeled as containing carpets and textiles, furniture, wheel-hub testing equipment and a casting machine, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. The shipping companies listed for the products were also found to be fake.
In total, authorities seized more than 1,000 kilograms — the equivalent of more than 2,200 pounds — of methamphetamine embedded in these shipping containers.
“Dangerous drugs like methamphetamine devastate our community. We see the misery that highly addictive drugs bring to our streets every day,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement. “The massive amount of methamphetamine seized in this case shows just how brazen drug traffickers have become and why it is imperative that we use our resources to hold these criminals accountable.”
Authorities said they eventually traced those shipments back to Li, who was arrested Thursday when he was spotted driving near a South El Monte warehouse where the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department had responded to a reported theft earlier in the day.
Inside that warehouse, authorities said, were shipping labels, scales and also a package containing methamphetamine.
If convicted of the charges, Li faces a minimum sentence of 10 years and a possible maximum sentence of life in federal prison.
Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Australian Federal Police have been investigating the case.
“Located just three hours north of the busiest land border crossing in the Western Hemisphere, Los Angeles has become a critical link in the transnational narcotics trade,” said Eddy Wang, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Los Angeles, in a statement. “HSI Los Angeles and our partners… are committed to dismantling these organizations on both sides of the Pacific.”
