Twenty-three people were arrested on 29 October 2026 in a coordinated takedown across Tulare and Kings counties, California.[1] The takedown involved 22 search-warrant locations, six federal arrest warrants and 20 state warrants executed by local, state and federal agencies.[2] Operation Crystal Tract began in June 2025 when Tulare County Sheriff’s Office detectives began targeting drug traffickers in the area.[2] The early phase focused on Fidel Vasquez and Xaiver Medrano of Tulare.[2] By March 2026 the focus expanded to Juan Plascencia, also known as Bronco, of Visalia and his brother Gustavo Plascencia.[2] Over the following months detectives identified three separate drug trafficking organizations, numerous suspected associates and three potential stash-house locations across the two counties.[2]
Officers seized 11 pounds of marijuana, about 4.99 kilograms, as the cannabis component of the operation.[2] The same haul also included 17 firearms, 3 pounds of meth, 1 kilogram of fentanyl, 36 grams of cocaine, 96 Xanax pills, 9 grams of mushrooms, 30 ounces of the hallucinogenic drug DMT and $100,000 in cash.[1]
The Tulare County Sheriff’s Office led the investigation with the Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Marshals Service, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Visalia, Porterville and Tulare police departments and the Kings County Sheriff’s Office.[1] Detectives said the suspects had connections to larger drug trafficking networks operating throughout the Central Valley.[2]
