Stockton Man Sentenced to 5 Years for Operating Residential Meth Conversion Lab

San Joaquin County District Attorney Ron Freitas announced today that Jose Andres Garcia-Soto has been sentenced to five years in state prison following a major METRO Task Force operation that uncovered a conversion lab and 20 pounds of crystal methamphetamine in a residential neighborhood.

On January 13, 2026, Garcia-Soto pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine for sale (H&S 11378) and admitted to a weight enhancement for possessing over one kilogram of the drug.

The case stems from a February 26, 2025, raid at a residence on the 2451 block of East Poplar Street. METRO agents and the Stockton Police Department SWAT team discovered a methamphetamine conversion lab inside the defendant’s bedroom. A METRO K-9 unit alerted agents to a large bag containing 9 kilograms, approximately 20 pounds, of crystal meth. Agents also found multiple containers of MSM, a horse supplement used as a cutting agent, scattered throughout the backyard.

“Twenty pounds of meth is not a 'street level' problem; it is a wholesale attack on the safety of our families,” said District Attorney Ron Freitas. “This defendant was running a chemical refinery in a neighborhood bedroom, turning horse supplements into poison for profit. Today, the lab is closed, the drugs are destroyed, and the manufacturer is exactly where he belongs, behind bars.”

District Attorney Freitas would like to thank the METRO Task Force, the Stockton Police Department, and the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office for their vital work in this investigation. He also extends his gratitude to Deputy District Attorney Sean Collins for his expert handling of the prosecution and for ensuring this high-level trafficker was held accountable.