Drug sweep nets probation officer and her Crips boyfriend

A Los Angeles County probation officer and her boyfriend, a high-ranking member of a Crips Pomona street gang, have been arrested along with a dozen other gang associates on federal narcotics-trafficking charges, authorities said today.

County Probation Officer Crystal Dillard was arrested last month along with her boyfriend Jerron Johnson, 27, following a yearlong investigation, authorities said. Dillard is suspected of participating in multiple crack cocaine transactions, including one in which she was accompanied by a young child.

The narcotics investigation stemmed in part from an investigation into Dillard and her relationship with Johns, a known gang member with several felony drug convictions going back to 2000.

Dillard and Johns, of San Bernardino, are both in federal custody. Two other defendants are in state facilities and 10 other associates were arrested this morning in the San Gabriel and Pomona valleys during a multi-agency operation led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Pomona police, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Several defendants remain at large, including Raymond “Ray Dog” King, 37, a man authorities allege is a gang leader and a main supplier of crack cocaine in the Pomona area.

A 17-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury accuses 23 defendants of participating in a drug ring that trafficked in cocaine, crack cocaine and marijuana. The indictment documents a series of transactions involving kilogram-quantities of cocaine.

Twice in April 2007, Dillard allegedly delivered crack cocaine, once dropping it off under a car at a Vons market parking lot in Upland and then in a trash can at a Chevron station in Claremont, according to court documents. The drugs were then retrieved by Johns and sold to a confidential informant, the documents stated.

During an April 27, 2007 drug drop at the Chevron, Dillard had a child in her car, the court record states. In May 2007, Johns made another drug deal in Dillard’s car, officials allege.

Johns, who is also known as “Japs,” was arrested on Jan. 30 following various drug transactions when he allegedly sold nearly one kilogram of crack cocaine to confidential informants who were working with investigators, according to court documents.

Both Johns and King face potential sentences of life without parole because of their prior drug-related convictions. King, the indictment indicates, was the source of large amount of drugs in the case and operated several drug stash homes in the Pomona area.

Authorities identified those arrested as Jeremiah Johnson, 29; Matthew Moore, 27; Carl Ingram, 29; Karriem Bradford, 34; Nekea Rojas, 28; Miracle Wilkerson, 30; Alicia Bass, 23; Willie Ward, 35; Michael Woods, 37; and Eric Quintin Massengale, 46.

The two defendants already in state custody are Lakiea Jones, 27 and Maleek Jenkins, 31. In addition to King, investigators are still seeking several other defendants named in the indictment: Arif Habib, 26; Larry Kirk, 27; Jamie Bailey, 44; April Green, 32; Brandi Hall, 28; Joseph Crawford, 39; and James Dixon, 39.

“This is the fourth successful operation targeting street gangs in as many months,” said U.S. Atty. Thomas P. O’Brien. “We will continue to work with local authorities to go after the worst street gangs that traffic in narcotics and terrorize neighborhoods with their violence.”

Investigators during the operation seized approximately four kilograms of cocaine, about one kilogram of crack cocaine and several firearms.

“The FBI is proud of its successful partnership with the Pomona Police Department, the DEA and its other law enforcement partners, which has resulted in the removal of violent gang members from the streets of Pomona,” said Salvador Hernandez, assistant director in charge of the FBI in Los Angeles.

Pomona Police Chief Joe Romero added, “Such collaboration not only enhances our ability to fight gangs and drug dealers, but it also serves as a model for future crime-fighting operations in Pomona.”

richard.winton@latimes.com