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Christopher Jone, and Wykim Williams, both age 43 from New York City, were arrested on Monday, March 29, following warrant raids on a seventh-floor apartment in Queens, said Bridget G. Brennan, Special Narcotics Prosecutor.
During the raids, investigators and agents recovered one loaded handgun, and more than $200,000, in addition to seizing the 50 kilograms of cocaine, as part of an ongoing drug investigation.
Officials said agents watched as Jones entered the apartment building Jamaica, Queens, and leave a short time later carrying a weighted suitcase.
Jones was observed putting the heavy suitcase in a blue Dodge Caravan and driving away.
At approximately 3:30 p.m., agents and investigators approached Jones in his vehicle and recovered more than $200,000 from the suitcase. The money was packaged in a manner consistent with narcotics trafficking, officials said.
Officers continued to monitor the apartment and noticed Williams around apartment No. 706. A search warrant for apartment 706 was obtained and executed.
Fifty intact two-kilogram packages with the distinct marking “CR7”, containing cocaine were seized from a locked closet in the apartment.
CR7 is the nickname for popular Portuguese soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo.
Also recovered from the closet and elsewhere in the apartment was $10,000, a Thunder Pro Compact 45ACP firearm, and materials commonly used in large-scale narcotics distribution, including a kilogram press, vacuum bags, vacuum sealer, shrink wrap, and money counting machines, officials said.
Both men were charged with:
- Two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance
- Two counts of possession of a weapon
- Criminally using drug paraphernalia
Bail was set at $150,000 for Jones and $250,000 for Williams.
“It is shocking to find, in an apartment in a large residential development across the street from a public park, a stash of cocaine worth $2 million dollars, a handgun, and equipment to support large-scale narcotics trafficking,” said Brennan. “I thank the attorneys, investigators, and agents who uncovered this for their diligence.”s
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