The investigators moved in after watching Qadir McCrae, 25, complete a pair of broad daylight deals near the corner of Broadway and Summer Street shortly before noon Tuesday, Public Safety Director Jerry Speziale said.
Both times, a 17-year-old boy acted as lookout, Speziale said.
The juvenile was carrying a 9mm Glock 19 handgun loaded with 12 rounds, 86 heroin folds and $101 in proceeds when police grabbed him and McCrae as they began to drive away, the director said.
McCrae, who records show spent two years in state prison on a gun conviction, was carrying 405 heroin folds, nearly three dozen bags of crack and $795 in proceeds, Speziale said.
He was sent to the Passaic County Jail to await a first appearance in Central Judicial Processing Court in Paterson on drug possession and distribution charges, as well as resisting arrest.
The boy was sent to the Essex County Detention Center on a delinquency complaint charging him with drug and weapons offenses.
They also arrested the two buyers, both from Paterson, who Speziale said were carrying several folds of heroin each.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Saddle Brook-Elmwood Park and receive free news updates.