A city couple is seeking the return of more than $10,000 in cash that city police seized during a drug raid in November 2012 that yielded no illegal narcotics.
Prosecutor Paul J. Narducci is attempting to prove the cash seized from Catrice Williams and Tyrone Santiago, who are both in their late 20s and have prior drug convictions, is the proceeds of drug transactions and is therefore subject to forfeiture.
Williams and Santiago are exercising their right to an asset forfeiture hearing, which is a civil court proceeding at which the state must present clear and convincing evidence that the money was derived from drug sales.
The couple cross-examined three police officers as the hearing got underway today before Judge Susan B. Handy. Williams and Santiago asked for a continuance so they could speak to an attorney before presenting their case. The judge continued the hearing to March 27,
According to testimony and court documents, the police executed a search and seizure warrant at 70 Brainard St., Apt. 1 after an anonymous tip line caller and a confidential informant told them there were drug sales at the apartment. The police said they conducted two controlled purchases of illegal drugs at the apartment in the weeks before the raid during which they observed somebody resembling Williams meet the confidential informant at the door.
The officers said they forced their way into the apartment, finding no illegal narcotics but seizing $8,000 in cash from a bedroom closet and sums of money from Santiago’s pants pocket, two purses and a dresser drawer. Williams and Santiago dispute the amount of money seized and say the police took other items, including jewelry. They said the officers thanked them for the money and “high-fived” each other as they left the apartment.
Though nobody has been arrested, the police said the investigation is continuing.
Officer Brian Laurie testified that Williams had a lot of “brand new clothing” in the apartment, including “dozens upon dozens” of shoes. He said the officers marked three large plasma screen televisions as evidence. He noted Williams had two vehicles - an Audi and an a minivan - and that the house was well-stocked with food. Williams, who said she works in the health care industry, said she was unemployed when the raid occurred but is currently working two jobs.
State labor regulators have ordered a Chino warehouse operator to pay more than $1 million in overtime plus $200,000 in penalties for hundreds of state labor law violations.
State Labor Commissioner Julie Su issued citations Monday to Quetico, a warehouse and distribution company that handles shoes, apparel and electronic goods for Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and other big-box retailers.
The commissioner's investigation of two Quetico facilities, totaling a half-million square feet, found that the company created restrictive procedures which shorted 865 workers of their wages. Employees were forced to come to work early to stand in long lines to punch time cards at only three available clocks, the state said.
Employees also were denied legally required lunch and rest breaks, the state said.
"Wage theft takes many forms," Su said in a statement.
"My office will crack down on any employer who is taking hard-earned wages from workers by falsifying time cards and systematically preventing employees from taking a full meal break.... We are also intent on eliminating the competitive advantages that labor law violators gain over employers who play by the rules."
Quetico did not respond to a request for comment on the alleged labor law violations.
Quetico's warehouses also have been cited by state agencies for safety violations in the last year, according to Warehouse Workers United, a union-backed group that has been campaigning to highlight alleged labor abuses at Inland Empire distribution centers used by Wal-Mart and other retailers.
"Many of the problems that we commonly see in Southern California warehouses are concentrated at this warehouse," said Guadalupe Palma, the group's director.
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