Nearly two dozen arrested in Bay Area during statewide sting aimed at alleged burglary ring targeting marijuana businesses

Nearly two dozen people — the majority of them Alameda County residents — were recently arrested as part of a wide-ranging sting to root out a statewide burglary ring that targeted marijuana dispensaries across California, state and local law enforcement officials announced Thursday.

The arrests capped a monthslong investigation into at least 15 marijuana dispensary burglaries across nine different counties, ranging from the California-Mexico border to the state’s coastal wine country, according to the California Attorney General’s Office. Together, the alleged burglars stole about 975 pounds of marijuana, resulting in losses totaling $1 million, the agency said.

Oakland police investigators and members of the city’s Ceasefire program were instrumental in identifying the suspects and helping to coordinate their arrests, said Deputy Chief Frederick Shavies of the Oakland Police Department.

“This operation not only made the city of Oakland safer, but the entire state of California,” said Shavies, at a press conference Thursday afternoon.

Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao lauded the arrests as a sign of the city’s commitment to rooting out crime.

“We are sending a very strong message here in the city of Oakland,” Thao said. “And that strong message is: If you commit a crime, you may not be caught today, you may not be caught tomorrow, you may not be caught this week. But we are working day-in and day-out to to ensure that we bring those who commit crimes against our communities to justice.”

The investigation began in February, barely two months after undercover Oakland police officer Tuan Le was fatally shot while responding to a break-in at a marijuana grow house along the city’s waterfront. The Dec. 29 shooting marked the first killing of an Oakland on-duty police officer in roughly 15 years.

At least two officers who helped arrest suspects in Le’s death also played a key role in the subsequent statewide sting, Shavies said.

Still, Shavies offered no suggestion of any ties between the officer’s death and the operation announced Thursday. He said he had no information that any of the suspects arrested as part of the sting were involved in the burglaries along Embarcadero the morning that Le was shot.

Most, if not all, of the suspects arrested as part of the sting are expected to be prosecuted by the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s Office, given that the county marked the location of many of the burglaries, authorities said.