California Guard drug task force member arrested, accused of leaking info to drug dealer
An Army reservist assigned to the California National Guard’s headquarters in Sacramento County and to a counter-drug-trafficking task force has been arrested by the FBI on a weapons charge and is believed to have leaked sensitive information on drug raids to an individual involved in illegal drug activities, court records say.
Ruby Celly Uribe, 34, a 17-year Army veteran and sergeant first class, was arrested by the FBI and booked into the Sacramento County Main Jail early Friday on a charge of possession of an unregistered short-barreled rifle.
Uribe made a brief appearance in federal court Friday afternoon, wiping her eyes with a tissue as U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah Barnes noted she had no criminal record and agreed to allow her release on an unsecured $25,000 bond.
As part of a 17-page criminal complaint and affidavit unsealed Friday, FBI Special Agent Deanna Williams described a series of suspicious activities by Uribe that included providing military ammunition to a close associate and leaking sensitive information to him about upcoming drug raids.
“This investigation revealed that Uribe leaked operational intelligence and law enforcement plans to people involved in drug trafficking organizations, that she misappropriated military property and funds for personal use, and that she illegally possessed and trafficked firearms,” an affidavit from Williams states. “In particular, Uribe leaked operational information to Person 1, a person she knew to be involved in illegal drug activities, and whom she believed to be connected to other drug trafficking organizations.”
The investigation, which included task force briefings on phony drug raids conducted to ferret out possible leaks, included a review of Uribe’s text messages to others involving counter-drug operations, court records say.
“Based upon my training and experience, a trusted insider leaking this kind of information in advance of troop movements could not only have compromised the mission, but also led to the injury or death of military and law enforcement officers,” Williams wrote in the affidavit.
The National Guard said in a statement to The Bee that “since the beginning of this investigation, the California Military Department has been cooperating with and in support of federal law enforcement authorities.”
“The allegations against this Soldier do not reflect the highest standards held by the service members of the California Military Department,” Lt. Col. Brandon Hill wrote in an email. “Due to this being an ongoing civilian criminal investigation and prosecution, we are unable to provide further comment.”
Reservist faces weapons charge over short-barreled rifle
Uribe, an Antelope resident, is charged only with the weapons possession charge, one involving a short-barreled .223-caliber Remington rifle found in a safe at her home during a December 2022 search, court records say.
The rifle had a barrel length of 9 inches, “only slightly more than half the required size of 16 inches,” court records say.
“The rifle had a hole drilled above the selector to allow for an autosear to be installed,” court records say. “The rifle also had parts installed that allowed it to fire in full-automatic mode (i.e., as a machine gun).”
The affidavit says that in addition to possessing the weapon and attempting to sell an unserialized “ghost gun,” Uribe “leaked operational intelligence to Person 1, who had then recently retired from the military.”
That individual was not named, but court papers say he was arrested by Turlock police in March 2022 on marijuana trafficking charges and was a close associate to someone identified as “Person 2,” who was charged in a federal drug trafficking indictment out of Fresno.
“That case that involves controlled buys of fentanyl and cocaine from Person 2’s drug trafficking organization,” court records say.
Phony raids to ferret out leaker
After the arrest of “Person 1” and the discovery of 223 marijuana plants, six high-capacity magazines and 90 rounds of ammunition, FBI and drug task force investigators held a briefing on Nov. 9, 2022, describing phony plans for an upcoming raid to task force members, including Uribe, court records say.
“With the CDTF’s cooperation, a fake marijuana grow interdiction operation was briefed to the CDTF National Guard members,” court records say. “The operation was briefed on November 9, 2022 at approximately 3:30 p.m.
“The operation was described as a large scale, multi-resident operation happening in the Turlock, California area. The day of the operation was set for November 11, 2022, and all members of CDTF were required to attend the operation.”
Following the briefing, investigators extracted information from “Person 1’s” cell phone that included a Nov. 9 text chat with Uribe “in which she shares details of the (ruse) operation,” court records say.
“There’s a mission manana alli en Turlock apparently it’s something big,” Uribe texted, according to court records.
“Oh no s---,” Person 1 replied, court records say.
‘You could’ve saved my life’
The examination of the phone also revealed a text conversation between the two of them regarding a Jan. 5, 2022, raid “wherein Uribe leaked information about another CDTF mission,” court records say.
“In two weeks they have a big bust starting from LA...taking down everything that’s excess...,” Uribe texted, court records say. “we have box trucks committed to this.”
“Oh dammm,” Person 1 replied, according to court records, adding, “You could’ve saved my life.”
“During an interview of Person 1 with the FBI on January 24, 2023, agents asked why Uribe would share information about CDTF operations with him,” court records say. “Person 1 responded that Uribe believed Person 1 knew all the ‘weed dealers’ in the area because Person 1 had his own marijuana grow.”
Court records also say FBI surveillance of her home revealed that she had a military-owned truck at the residence without permission and that she was using a government credit card to purchase diesel for the truck for personal trips.
