Rodolfo Torres-Galvan, Conspiracy to Manufacture and Distribute Mar…

FRESNO, Calif. — Rodolfo Torres-Galvan, 30, of Michoacán, Mexico, is headed to federal prison for running a toxic pot farm in the heart of the Kiavah Wilderness, a protected stretch of Sequoia National Forest. Torres-Galvan was sentenced today to three years and 10 months behind bars after pleading guilty to conspiring to manufacture, distribute, and possess with intent to distribute marijuana, federal prosecutors announced.

His arrest came after a two-month sting led by the U.S. Forest Service, which tracked Torres-Galvan and two co-defendants—Mauricio Vaca-Bucio (Vaca), 31, and Felipe Angeles Valdez-Colima (Valdez), 35, both also Mexican nationals—emerging from deep within the federally protected Kiavah Wilderness. Surveillance caught the trio exiting the dense forest and climbing into a Camaro driven by Vaca. They were stopped in Weldon, where officers found freshly harvested marijuana packed in the vehicle.

Following the bust, law enforcement traced the trail back into the wilderness, uncovering a sprawling grow operation with more than 1,800 marijuana plants. But the site wasn’t just illegal—it was deadly. Investigators found carbofuran and zinc phosphide, banned pesticides known to poison wildlife and humans, both at the grow site and stashed in the Camaro. The chemicals pose long-term environmental threats to soil and water sources in the fragile ecosystem.

U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd didn’t just hand down prison time—he ordered Torres-Galvan to pay $7,620 in restitution to the U.S. Forest Service for the ecological damage caused by the operation. The Kiavah Wilderness, designated in 1994, is co-managed by the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service and falls within a critical environmental concern zone. Using it as a narcotics lab is a direct assault on federal conservation law.

The case was built by a multi-agency dragnet: U.S. Forest Service led the charge, with boots on the ground from ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations, the Campaign Against Marijuana Planting (CAMP), California Department of Fish and Wildlife, California National Guard, Kern County Sheriff’s Office, and Kern County Probation Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen A. Escobar prosecuted.

Valdez and Vaca have already pleaded guilty and await sentencing on May 20 and July 29, respectively. Each faces a minimum of 10 years and up to life in prison, plus a $10 million fine. While statutory penalties loom large, the final sentences will hinge on federal guidelines and judicial discretion. One thing’s clear: the wilds of California aren’t a free-for-all for foreign-run drug cartels.

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