Ecstasy suspect faces 20 years

A Newport Beach man will be arraigned later this month on charges that he allegedly tried to exchange $2 million worth of Ecstasy pills for a large amount of cocaine as part of an international drug trade, federal officials said.

Alexandru Sabau, 37, appeared in court Monday and faces up to 20 years in federal prison on charges of conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance across the Canadian border after federal agents found about 100,000 Ecstasy pills in the trunk of his rental car, which he planned to exchange for 25 kilograms of cocaine, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said.

Ecstasy is a drug popular with younger people and rave parties for its euphoric and psychedelic effects.

Sabau was arrested near his Newport Bluffs apartment in the 9000 block of Residencia on Friday after a three-month investigation involving many smaller arrests in Santa Monica and west Los Angeles led ICE agents and Santa Monica police to Sabau, said Jennifer Filliman, deputy special agent in charge of ICE Los Angeles.

Between April and June, Santa Monica police and ICE agents monitored a series of drug deals between Sabau and an ICE informant at a Newport Beach coffee shop off of MacArthur Boulevard, according to the government’s affidavit.

At first, Sabau, a Canadian citizen of Romanian descent, exchanged 1,000 pills of the drug for $3,500 from the informant, authorities said. Federal agents upped the ante on their next deal, instructing the informant to make a deal for 5,000 pills, according to the affidavit.

Throughout the investigation, documents allege, Sabau repeatedly asked the informant if he had a cocaine dealer. The informant told Sabau his cocaine connection only worked on large-scale deals and was prepared to exchange Ecstasy for 25 kilograms of cocaine, worth about $2 million, officials said.

“First it was 1,000, then it was 5,000, then 100,000. It speaks to this guy’s ability to get his hands on large amounts of ecstasy,” Filliman said.

Sabau does not have a U.S. Green Card and it’s not clear if he’s a permanent resident, officials said.

Authorities arrested Sabau soon after he notified the informant that his Ecstasy had arrived from Canada, officials said.

A search of Sabau’s home turned up $14,000 in cash and a small amount of cocaine, Filliman said. A bond hearing is scheduled for July 8 and his arraignment is set for July 21.

This is one of the largest Ecstasy busts in the Los Angeles county area and the second seizure of $2 million worth of Ecstasy since October 2007, Filliman said.

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.