DRUG SUSPECT INADVERTENTLY FREED FROM JAIL

An alleged drug kingpin held in Los Angeles after the seizure of a
half-ton of cocaine was inadvertently freed from jail and probably
fled the country, authorities said.

Salvador Gomez, 28, of Paramount, who allegedly dealt with financial
matters for a drug trafficking family, and five others were arrested
Feb. 12 and were each ordered held in lieu of $20 million bail. But
Gomez was released from county jail last Thursday, a day after his
video arraignment court appearance, Deputy Steve Sciacca said Wednesday.

Gomez was identified for release by the Los Angeles Police Department,
and he was freed by the sheriff's department based on information
provided by the police, Sciacca said. The sheriff operates the jail.

``There was a flaw in the system, or a mistake was made. He wasn't
supposed to get out,'' said Special Agent Andy Alonso, a state
Department of Justice investigator on the staff of a consortium of
local police agencies known as the L.A. Impact Task Force.