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A dozen people from Greenfield, Deerfield, Montague, Ludlow, Charlemont, and West Springfield were arrested in connection with the enterprise, said Laurie Loisel, with the Northwestern District Attorney's Office.
The group was busted on Tuesday, Dec. 14, when members of the Northwestern District Anti-Crime Task Force coordinated the simultaneous execution of several search warrants seizing the alleged criminal organization’s stash of cocaine and other evidence, Loisel said.
During the warrants sweep, two brothers, believe to be the alleged organizers of the operation, were arrested including Hampshire County resident Brandon Rice, age 35, Hatfield, and Hampden County resident Daniel Rice, age 38, of West Springfield, Loisel said.
Daniel Rice owns Dapper Dan’s Barbershop in Greenfield, a location that was believed to be part of the alleged criminal operation, the DA's Office said.
Both men were ordered held on $500,000 cash bail and their cases continued until Jan. 14.
The investigation worked to uncover the organized syndicate’s alleged members, methods of the daily distribution of trafficking, weight quantities of cocaine, and locations of operation.
During the warrants sweep, police more than four kilos of cocaine and other drugs were seized, the DA's Office said.
The following were also arrested during the sweep:
- Jason Nadeau, age 40, of Ludlow
- David Caplice, age 38, of Greenfield
- Nathan Ortiz, age 38, of Greenfield
- Jason Byrd, age 42, of Greenfield
- Wayne Rockwood, age 43, of Greenfield
- Heather Symanski, age 31, of Greenfield
- Robert Blake, age 46, of Greenfield
- Rebekah Thompson, age 37, of Charlemont
- David Gallegos, age 28, of Deerfield
- Jaimilee Bontempi, age 29, of Deerfield
- Damek Ryan, age 37, of Montague
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