The yearlong investigation into drug dealers operating in Port Chester, Connecticut and the Bronx led to the arrests of five new suspects (with another arrested last week), Westchester County District Attorney Anthony Scarpino, Jr., announced. The latest sweep comes on the heels of a bust that led to the arrests of a dozen people selling heroin and other drugs in and around Mount Vernon who were charged in a 68-count indictment.
Five men were taken into custody in early morning raids in multiple locations in Port Chester on Wednesday morning:
- Eleonay Navarez, 50;
- Javelle Ross, 29;
- Kaley Herring, 54;
- Andre Price, 52;
- Eugene “Jay” Rodrigues, 60.
A sixth suspect, Rafael Olivera, was already being held in jail following his arrest in the Bronx last week.
“Today's arrests are the culmination of an investigation that began in late 2018 after the Port Chester Police Detective Bureau, and the Greenwich Police Department noted an upsurge in overdose deaths attributable to heroin and fentanyl,” Scarpino said in a statement. "Acting with a sense of urgency, the agencies involved functioned seamlessly in a combined effort.
“Most notable among them; the Westchester County District Attorney's Office, the Westchester County Police Narcotics unit, the Greenwich Police Department, the New York State Attorney General’s Office, and the New York Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Strike Force.
"The officers involved performed admirably. They did so often under the most challenging and dangerous conditions. I could not be more proud of our Departments participation in this endeavor, and could not be more grateful than I am to every law enforcement officer who participated.”
According to Scarpino, the indictments allege that each suspect sold heroin, often packaged in glassine envelopes that had a stamp that resembled the New York Yankees logo, with the letters “NY” in the team’s blue font.
- Narvaez was charged with eight counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a controlled substance for alleged drug sales between Aug. 2 and Nov. 1 last year. He was also charged with four counts of conspiracy.
- Ross was charged with two counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a controlled substance for alleged drug sales between Aug. 29 and Sept. 26 last year. He was also charged with two counts of conspiracy.
- Herring was charged with three counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a controlled substance for alleged drug sales between Sept. 27 and Oct. 2 last year. He was also charged with four counts of conspiracy.
- Price was charged with three counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a controlled substance for alleged drug sales on Nov. 5, 6 and 7 last year. He was also charged with two counts of conspiracy.
- Rodrigues was charged with four counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a controlled substance for alleged incidents on Oct. 29 and Nov. 3, 10 and 12 last year. He was also charged with two counts of conspiracy.
- Olivera was charged with four counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a controlled substance for alleged incidents on Oct. 4 and 8 last year. He was also charged with two counts of conspiracy.
“These individuals led a multi-jurisdiction operation to bring illicit drugs into our communities and put our residents in harm’s way," New York Attorney General Letitia James stated. "The strong partnership between our local and state law enforcement was critical to obtaining these individuals and those who my office arrested last week.
"In order to combat the heroin and opioid epidemic that is killing far too many, we must continue to work together and I thank the Westchester District Attorney’s Office and the Port Chester Police for their diligent work on this.”
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