EXETER – A gang member and his wife were taken into custody after a two-week investigation led to a search of their home and the discovery of marijuana plants and packaged marijuana.
The Tulare County Sheriff’s Department’s investigation into the sales of illegal narcotics in the Exeter area led deputies to a home in the 500 block of Channing Way in Exeter.
Investigators from the Inter Agency Narcotics Enforcement Team (INET), consisting of personnel from Exeter PD, Farmersville PD and the Tulare Sheriff’s Department’s Narcotics Division, searched the residence.
Inside the residence, occupied by 25-year-old Ramiro Gutierrez and 21-year-old Adela Gutierrez, investigators discovered 87 marijuana plants, 15 pounds of marijuana packages for sale, scales and packaging material. A rifle was also found, according to authorities.
The couple has two children, ages 5 and 2. Detectives found five pounds of marijuana in the kids’ room underneath their bed. The children were turned over to Child Protective Services, according to authorities.
Ramiro Gutierrez, a validated gang member and Adela Gutierrez were booked on charges of child endangerment and various drug charges. Another validated gang member, 25-year-old Renteria Rigberto, was also found at the residence and was arrested on a charge of possession of drug paraphernalia.
