DRUG STING LEADS TO 3 ARRESTS IN T.O.

Byline: Teresa Jimenez Daily News Staff Writer

Authorities arrested three men on drug charges Thursday morning after undercover officers purchased drugs at their apartments several times, Ventura County Sheriff Capt. Dennis Carpenter said.

Felix Roberto Quinta, 23, and Irwin Flota, 32, were arrested on suspicion of selling cocaine, and Pedro Alejandro Tello, 20, was arrested on suspicion of possession of marijuana and possession of a cellular telephone with no serial numbers during the raid, Carpenter said.

The Sheriff's Department narcotics unit and the FBI began investigating the apartment complex at 850 Warwick Ave. after receiving tips that drugs were being sold there, Carpenter said.

Since the investigation began two months ago, four search warrants have been served at the complex, Carpenter said. He could not say how many arrests resulted from the searches.

On Thursday at about 11:20 a.m., investigators searched apartment No. 113, where undercover officers had bought cocaine from Quinta and Flota, Carpenter said.

Authorities also searched apartment No. 108, where undercover officers had bought marijuana, Carpenter said. The cell phone was found at that time, he said. Serial numbers are usually needed to operate the phones, and those without the codes are often operated with stolen phone numbers, he said.

The FBI participated in the search because of a team effort the agency established with the sheriff's department, Carpenter said.

An FBI officer has worked with the department on loan for the past four years on federal and nonfederal cases, Carpenter said.

``He works with us because sometimes there are cases that need to be filed through the federal court system,'' Carpenter said.

Quinta and Flota were being held in the Main Jail in Ventura in lieu of $20,000 bail. Tello was released on $500 bail.