Sixty people were arrested after a yearlong investigation linking the Iraqi community at El Cajon with Mexico’s most prominent drug cartel, The Sinaloa cartel lead by “El Chapo.”

    The arrests came after a long undercover investigation lead by DEA and El Cajon Police Department, called Operation Shadowbox. Authorities still consider the investigation open and say more arrests might come soon.

    They found the Chaldean Organized Crime Sindicate (an extremist group based in Detroit) had contact with members from the Sinaloa Cartel, lead by feared Chapo Guzman, as a way to get a hold of illegal weapons in San Diego to send to the group’s members in Detroit.

    During the operation authorities seized $630,000 in cash, 18 pounds of meth, cocaine and other drugs as well as 30 weapons and 4 homemade explosives.

    According to court documents, made public after the arrests. The group was lead by a man by the name of Nofeel Noel Suelyman, nicknamed “Jorgee” and it is alleged he was in charge of drug sales and distribution as well as illegal gun possession.

    Most of the arrests were made at a local barbershop, known in the community to be a front for illegal gambling and prostitution. It was there, authorities’ claim, the guns and drugs sales were done to be sent to Detroit.

    The barbershop is on a main avenue, right next to a specialty market and a lawnmower store. It has long been the subject of complaints from neighbors and community groups that asked police to shut it down. Chaldeans are Iraqi Christians who came to the United States seeking asylum because of religious persecution in their native country. About 40 thousand Chaldeans make San Diego their home, making it one of the largest communities in the United States.

    Doctor Noori Barka, president of Calbiotech and Chaldean leader describes his fellow Chaldeans as a quiet community who made El Cajon their home for the past 50 years.

    “As it is true in any other community we have people who are not good, but we had made an effort against this type of behavior looking for that place to disappear, even before the arrests were made,” he said.

   According to the court documents, last April, an undercover agent working at the border found an undocumented immigrant who had a grenade. The man told the agent he got it from corrupt Mexican military in Tijuana and could get more.

   Authorities say in their investigation it was through their illegal entry to the US from Tijuana where Chaldeans had contact with the Mexican Cartel.

   But Barka considers the notion absurd.

   “A few Chaldeans made use of Tijuana smugglers over a decade ago” he explained, “but immigration laws changed long ago and we are given refugee status so we go through the legal process and no longer resort to dangerous methods such as those”.

   Neighborhood Market Association President, Mark Arabo said publicly he laments the misinformation on this case. He describes his community as discreet and hard working.

   He and others have been following the case closely and claim out of 60 arrested, only 30 have been formally charged with crimes including drug trafficking, illegal guns and other charges.

   “Out of those 30, 5 are of Middle Eastern descendant and just 4 of them are Chaldean” he said,” those who commit crimes must be punished but nobody is taking about the ethnicity of all the others (accused)….”

   The last names of those involved in the case seem to confirm Arabo’s claims.

   “We are aware there are people who harm our community, but we are the first to reject them” Arabo said. “They portray all Chaldeans as terrorists and all Mexicans as traffickers but little do they talk about this country’s consumption: The true drive behind this kind of activity.”