San Mateo County detectives seize 15,000 lbs of illegal fireworks, $1M in cash

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. - San Mateo County sheriff’s investigators arrested two people and seized thousands of pounds of fireworks a week before the Fourth of July holiday.

Detectives had been working on the case for two months. They decided to arrest the suspects this week because didn’t want the massive load of fireworks to make it onto the street ahead of the holiday.

Sheriff's deputies released a video of investigators displaying the 15,000 pounds of illegal fireworks that were seized late Thursday.

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"Illegal fireworks have been a problem in San Mateo county since I can remember," said Lieutenant Eamonn Allen, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office.

Allen said 61-year-old Sam San and 54-year-old Jennifer Nguyen are charged with a string of crimes including the possession and sale of dangerous fireworks and explosives.

During May and June, undercover agents spent thousands of dollars buying hundreds of pounds of illegal fireworks from San.

Investigators said San brought fireworks by boat to the Bay Area from China. He stored them in a warehouse near Lake Merritt in Oakland, and a home in San Jose.

He was arrested Thursday making a sale to undercover agents in Millbrae, which led detectives to raid his San Francisco apartment in the Tenderloin District. There, agents recovered about $1 million in cash.

"Our street crimes detectives had to come up with a plan to move a million dollars through the Tenderloin," said Allen.

San Jose State University climate scientist Dr. Alison Bridger said under current conditions, illegal fireworks are a literal powder keg that could set off a catastrophe.

"Everything becomes just a little more flammable. And this year, that’s happening earlier than normal," she said.

Bridger and other climate experts said drought conditions have caused the Bay Area’s dry season to arrive months in advance.

"It only takes one spark to set off some dry vegetation, and then somebody somewhere is in trouble if a wildfire starts," she said.

San bailed out of jail on Friday and is due in court July 6 for his arraignment. Nguyen’s role, beyond storing the fireworks in San Jose is still being determined.

Investigators said they believe while this case makes a dent in the illegal fireworks market, one seller is easily replaced by others.