Mesa police arrest 2 men after finding $425,000 of heroin, methamphetamine in PVC pipes

MESA, AZ - Authorities say Mesa police arrested two men and seized $425,000 worth of heroin late Thursday afternoon.

According to police, information obtained led police to believe Cruz Alarcon-Lozano and Jorge Gutierez were transporting heroin throughout the Valley in PVC pipes.

Detectives followed Gutierez after he left an address in Mesa and later stopped him after a traffic violation.

After gaining consent to search the vehicle, detectives found five PVC pipes with capped ends containing heroin, police say.

Also inside the vehicle at the time of the search was Gutierez' 4-month-old daughter in her car seat next to the drugs.

Gutierez was taken into custody and the baby's mother later took custody of the child.

During the same time, police say another vehicle left the same Mesa address.

The driver, Lozano, stopped in front of a vacant home and threw a heroin-filled PVC tube into the bushes, which detectives retrieved, according to police.

Lozano was taken into custody during a traffic stop after the incident.

Mesa detectives say they found 10.2 pounds of heroin total from both stops and four pounds of methamphetamine was found with a search warrant.

The total street value of the drugs was around $425,000, police say.

Lozano and Gutierez were booked for drug charges and Gutierez was additionally booked for child endangerment.