Patrol officers with the Long Beach Police Department (LBPD) recently seized 52 pounds of methamphetamine and $24,035 in cash after they conducted two unrelated traffic stops last Thursday night, authorities announced.

The incidents also led to the arrests of two Long Beach men, according to the LBPD.

The first traffic stop happened at 5:05PM when patrol officers traveling on Atlantic Avenue, south of Willow Street saw a car make an unsafe lane change, according to an LBPD Facebook post.

“They performed a traffic stop on the vehicle for the violation and through their investigation they learned the suspect had roughly 17 pounds of methamphetamine in the car,” officials stated.

Due to the high amount of drugs found, detectives from the Drug Investigations Section were called to the scene of the traffic stop.

Police also arrested the driver of the car, identified as 22-year-old Ricardo Manjarrezvizcarra, for possessing and transporting a controlled substance for sale.

He is being held on $250,000 bail.

The second traffic stop happened a few hours later at 9:45PM. In that incident patrol officers stopped a vehicle in an undisclosed area of the city and discovered methamphetamine and a large amount of U.S. currency.

Police arrested the suspect driver, identified as 30-year-old Leonardo Soria-Garfia, and notified the Drug Investigations Section, prompting detectives to respond to the scene.

During their investigation, authorities served a search warrant at a residence in the 1100 block of Salt Lake Street where additional methamphetamine was found and seized, officials reported.

A total of about 35 pounds was seized along with $24,035 in cash.

Soria-Garfia was booked into Long Beach Jail for possessing and transporting a controlled substance for sale. He is being held on $750,000.

Photos courtesy of LBPD.