by SEAN KIMMONS

Five suspected drug dealers were nabbed in Hays County last month after sting operations uncovered large amounts of cocaine, “ice” methamphetamine and ecstasy, authorities say.

The Hays County Narcotics Task Force set up drug deals to net two dealers in San Marcos, while arrest warrants caught three others in San Marcos and Dripping Springs.

Reynaldo Aguirre, 24, of Marion, was detained in the Lowe’s parking lot on Wonder World Drive with 20 grams of “ice,” a methamphetamine, when task force members arranged a drug deal with him on Dec. 7, an arrest affidavit says.

A week later, the task force received a tip from a confidential informant of an upcoming drug deal in the parking lot of the Starplex 12 movie theater, also located on Wonder World Drive. When authorities identified the two vehicles believed to be involved, a blue BMW convertible and a tan Jeep Grand Cherokee, they detained both drivers, a second arrest affidavit says.

One of the drivers, Jesus Olivas, 24, of San Marcos, confessed to officers that he was there to peddle ecstasy and a subsequent search of his vehicle revealed five grams of the drug, the report says.

On Dec. 19, a homeowner gave the Hays County Sheriff’s Office consent to search his Dripping Springs home in the 400 block of Creek Road to arrest Robert Macklin on outstanding warrants for selling drugs, a third arrest affidavit says.

As authorities entered the guest bedroom, they saw Macklin sitting on the bed with a glass smoking pipe on the floor nearby. During a search of his room, an officer pulled back the covers on his bed and found a large plastic bag containing what appeared to be “ice.” When questioned, Macklin said that it was in fact the drug, according to the report.

The quantity of the drug was not disclosed, however, the report said it was a “distributable amount.”

Macklin, 41, and Rebecca Matthews, 40, who was sharing the bedroom with him, were arrested for manufacturing or delivery of a controlled substance. Macklin was also charged with unlawful possession of a firearm, a third-degree felony; and two felony counts of manufacturing or delivery of a controlled substance, out of Bastrop County, jail records show.

Details of the firearm charge were not enclosed in the report.

In addition, alleged coke dealer Catarino Ybarra was apprehended Dec. 29 by the narcotics task force during an arrest warrant at his home in the 1300 block of Stacy in San Marcos, authorities say.

Task force members waited for Ybarra to leave his home to prevent the destruction of evidence. Once he was pulled over, officers searched Ybarra’s Ford truck and found five baggies of cocaine under the driver’s side floor mat, a fourth arrest affidavit says.

Ybarra, 40, was transported back to his home where he told law enforcement of more cocaine stashed in a jacket inside a bedroom closet. A total of more than 55 grams of cocaine was eventually seized from Ybarra, the report says

All five suspects have been charged with manufacturing or delivery of a controlled substance, a first-degree felony. Ybarra has since posted bail on a $20,000 bond while Macklin and Matthews, both from Elgin, were released on bonds worth $20,000 and $5,000, respectively. Aguirre is also out on a $10,000 bond and Olivas has been released on a $5,000 bond, jail records show.

SEAN KIMMONS reports for the Hays Free Press where this story was originally published. It is reprinted here through a news partnership between the Hays Free Press and the San Marcos Mercury.