Mentone pot collective owners arrested
By JESSE B. GILL, Staff Writer
Posted: 12/17/2010 09:27:29 PM PST
Sheriff's deputies arrested six people Thursday who were connected with a medical marijuana collective operating in Mentone.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department launched an investigation months ago into the operations at Mentone Patients Association at 1944 Mentone Blvd. Deputies served five warrants at the collective, two homes - one in Yucaipa and another in San Dimas - and a warehouse in Santa Fe Springs.
As a result of the investigation, deputies arrested Shannon Troncoso, 38, Luis Albert Hernandez, 40, Jason Craig Ramsey, 40, Gail Marie Shea, 38, Mayra Agueda Godoy, 25, and Tod Lee McDonald, 43.
Sheriff Rod Hoops called the collective's operation a "flagrant abuse of the medical marijuana laws."
Investigators seized about 10 pounds of marijuana from the collective, the homes and the warehouse, said sheriff's spokesperson Cindy Bachman.
"The last time we talked about it (marijuana) was valued between $3,000 and $3,500 per pound," she said.
Investigators also found "numerous" handguns, rifles and shotguns, and about $15,000 in cash.
Investigators launched a probe after they identified that the collective was violating Proposition 215, a California law passed 1996 that governs the use and sale of medical marijuana.
Medical marijuana collectives, under Prop. 215, are required to provide medical marijuana to collective members and take donations, Bachman said. The Mentone Patients
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Association was selling pot at specified prices.
"They were operating a business and were selling marijuana for profit, and that's illegal," Bachman said.
The collective also failed to the suspects have failed to report income and pay proper taxes to the State Board of Equalization, according to a sheriff's department news release.
Troncoso was arrested at the collective and was charged with conspiracy to commit a crime, unlawful marijuana distribution and possession of marijuana.
Shea, Troncoso's girlfriend, was arrested at the couple's San Dimas home on the same charges.
Godoy was a salesperson at the collective, Bachman said. She was also arrested on the same charges as Troncoso and Shea.
Hernandez, worked as a security guard at the collective, was arrested at his Yucaipa home on the same charges as Troncoso, Shea and Godoy. Hernandez was also arrested on outstanding warrants for driving under the influence, failure to appear, driving with a suspended license and a handful of minor traffic violations, Bachman said.
Ramsey, also a security guard, was arrested for conspiracy to commit a crime, possession of marijuana with intent to sell and possession of a firearm, Bachman said. He also received a street gang enhancement for allegedly being a member of the Diablos motorcycle gang.
Deputies did not find clear evidence that McDonald was involved with the marijuana collective, Bachman said. He was at Hernandez's home when deputies served the search warrant. McDonald was arrested for possession of a controlled substance. His bail is set at $25,000.
Bail for the five other suspects arrested is set at $500,000 each.
Shea was booked at West Valley Detention Center in Rancho Cucamonga. The other four suspects were booked at Central Detention Center in San Bernardino.
Mentone Patients Association opened in Mentone in late summer. The collective received its supply from members who grow marijuana, which is then sold as medical marijuana to its members, about 30 per day, according to Troncoso.
Though the collective's owners were arrested, the business itself isn't necessarily finished - or at least not yet.
San Bernardino County has a moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries and collectives in unincorporated areas like Mentone.
County spokesman David Wert said the Code Enforcement Department looks at violation of city code the same. Mentone Patients Association's violation of the county moratorium was treated like any other land-use issue, he said.
"The county philosophy for noncomplying businesses is that we trying to help them come into compliance," Wert said.
County Code Enforcement's policy is to cite noncomplying businesses as many as 13 times - including fines - before taking the matter to the court to shut down the noncomplying business.
"I don't know where we are in that process, but the county has been involved in active enforcement out there," Wert said.
Before opening up shop in Mentone, Troncoso ran Beaumont Collective Patients Association. That collective violated a Beaumont moratorium on medical marijuana facilities.
A Beaumont city spokesman said the city is taking legal action against Troncoso for about $90,000 in unpaid fines stemming from his collective's moratorium violation.
E-mail Staff Writer Jesse B. Gill at
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