Two men were charged by the SF DA’s office for dealing drugs in the Tenderloin, but the unusual twist in this case is that they were reportedly using a child to perform some of their drug deals for them.
On Friday, the SF District Attorney’s Office charged two men, 50-year-old Noel Guzman-Bonilla and 35-year-old Michael Major with various offenses related to the illegal sale of methamphetamine, crack cocaine, fentanyl, and Xanax in the Tenderloin, following their January 21 arrests for those crimes. Nothing unusual there, this kind of thing happens every day in San Francisco.
But what is unusual, as the Chronicle reports, is that the two men were also charged with using a child to sell the drugs for them. The Chron notes that SFPD officers noticed the youth “in a hyper vigilant state” on the 400 block of Eddy Street on January 21, and then noticed the youngster “handle suspected narcotics together” with Major. The youth then allegedly gave drug money to Guzman-Bonilla.
The Chronicle reports that “Police searched Guzman-Bonilla, Major and the minor and found them collectively in possession of 48.6 grams of fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, Xanax, $615 and two scales.”
Both men have pleaded not guilty. It’s unclear whether the minor was charged, and the actual age if the minor has not been announced.
Jenkins’s office said in a statement, that they "will use the full weight of the law in the fight to close open-air drug markets and hold drug dealers accountable, especially those that would exploit juveniles in their deadly trade."
While arrests have been made, this is an ongoing investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call the SFPD tip line at 415-575-4444, or text a tip to TIP411 and begin the message with “SFPD.” Tipsters can remain anonymous.
Image: Gavel & Handcuffs on wood table (Getty Images)
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