18 arrested in drug sting tied to horse racing - Shreveport Times

LAKE CHARLES — Calcasieu Parish authorities say 18 people arrested as part of a 1-year-long investigation were funneling lab quality methamphetamine into the area.

The investigation, dubbed Operation Havana Speed, involved several people with ties to horse racing. The operations results were announced this week.

On Monday, officers began arresting suspects in Louisiana and Texas. Lake Charles Police Chief Don Dixon said 11 search warrants resulted in the seizure of pounds of crystal meth, several weapons and the discovery of three active meth labs.

Of the suspects arrested, most had some tie to horse racing either as an owner, a jockey or a trainer, Dixon said.

That seemed to be the central theme, he said.

Authorities would not say whether any of the suspects were employed by Delta Downs, but no officials at the racetrack were targets of the investigation, Sheriff Tony Mancuso said.

The sting led to the seizure of assets from the horse-racing industry, as well as a large amount of steroids used on horses, Dixon said.

The information has been turned over to the Louisiana Racing Commission for further investigation.

Representatives from Lake Charles and Vinton police, the sheriffs office, state police, the Calcasieu Parish District Attorneys Office and the Office of Homeland Security participated in the investigation. Other law enforcement agencies were also involved.

Dixon said the suspected leaders of the organization are Mario Barrazacorral, who is being held in Texas; Sergio Reyes Castillo; and Lazaro Perez Cribeiro.

Cribeiro and Castillo are being held in the Calcasieu Correctional Center.

The investigation involved numerous undercover buys and many hours of surveillance, including aerial surveillance, Dixon said.

The investigation determined lab-quality crystal meth was being transported from locations in Texas to the Vinton-Starks area of west Calcasieu Parish, he said.

The operation took a turn when one of the subjects of the investigation went missing in May. The body of Jose Guadaloupe Perez Campos, 34, was pulled from the Neches River in Texas a few days later.