Trio allegedly threatened bodily harm to collect on dealer’s drug debts




Two family members and a friend of a young man accused of dealing drugs were arrested last week in Moorpark on charges of extortion for allegedly trying to collect on his drug debts while he was in jail.

Jeremy Hernandez was picked up Dec. 2 for possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute after Moorpark High School Resource Officer Leonard Lopez observed what appeared to be a drug transaction in a shopping center across the street from the school.

According to authorities, Hernandez was trying to sell marijuana to two high school students.

After being released to his parents because he was still a minor, Hernandez was arrested again on Dec. 16—following his 18th birthday on Dec. 9—when police found marijuana and about $7,000 in cash in his car following a traffic stop, a report said.

Police also reportedly uncovered marijuana, drug paraphernalia and OxyContin pills at his home in the 4700 block of Moorpark Avenue. OxyContin is an opiate derivative pain killer.

The prescription medication is often sold to drug users.

Following Hernandez’s second arrest, authorities received a report that his mother, Antoinette Rojas; his brother James Hernandez, 21; and friend Matthew Bennett, 19, were trying to collect money from family members of a buyer who’d purchased drugs from Hernandez on credit.

“(They were) trying to extort money from an individual’s family member for drug transactions,” said Sgt. Robert Thomas, supervisor of the narcotics investigation unit for the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.

The debt-collection attempts included threats of bodily harm, he said. According to Thomas, it’s not unusual for drug dealers to sell narcotics on the promise of future payment.

When dealers are arrested, friends and family sometimes get involved to collect on any debts, but such incidents rarely come to the attention of authorities, said Capt. Ron Nelson of the Moorpark Police.

“This is a very unusual case. People who owe money for drugs don’t generally go to the police,” Nelson said.

Rojas, James Hernandez and Bennett each face more than a year in state prison as co-conspirators in the sale of narcotics, which is a felony, Nelson added.

Thomas said the trio could have been attempting to collect the money to pay for Jeremy Hernandez’s bail, which was set at $100,000. But any funds acquired from drug debts would have been useless for that purpose because the court requires proof that bail money comes from legitimate sources, he said.

According to authorities, marijuana is the most prevalent drug in Moorpark. But heroin, methamphetamines and prescription drugs such as OxyContin and Xanax are also common.

Jeremy Hernandez had a doctor-issued medical marijuana card when he was arrested last month.

Proposition 215, also known as the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, was approved by California voters in 1996. It allows patients who have a valid doctor’s recommendation to possess and cultivate marijuana for personal medical use.

“A lot of people use the Proposition 215 umbrella as a shield or disguise for illegal drug activity,” Thomas said.

The medical marijuana law allows patients to possess a small amount of marijuana for personal use, but it doesn’t give them the authority to sell the pot for monetary gain, Thomas said.

A car valued at about $20,000 was also seized during the search of the Hernandez home. Proceeds from the vehicle, which will be sold at auction if Jeremy Hernandez is convicted, will go into a county trust fund that can be used to purchase equipment for narcotics investigations.


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