More than 10,000 vials of cocaine, several hundred grams of cocaine, $17,600 in cash and a handgun with an extended magazine were seized by detectives, ultimately leading to charges against Edwin Medina, 32 and his mother, Sandra Almodovar, 51, both of Newark, Essex County Prosecutor Theodore N. Stephens, II announced.
Detectives from the ECPO Narcotics Task Force first seized more than a kilo of suspected cocaine in a series of early morning raids at locations in Newark and Bloomfield, Stephens said.
Detectives were then able to obtain court authorized search warrants for four locations in north Newark and an apartment in Bloomfield. With help from the Newark Police SWAT Team, the Essex County Sheriff’s Tactical Response Team and the Bloomfield Police Emergency Response Team, detectives simultaneously executed the warrants and recovered, according to the prosecutor:
Approximately 10,400 vials of cocaine-packaged for distribution
- An additional 640 grams of unpackaged cocaine
- A 9-millimeter handgun with an extended magazine
- Approximately $17,600 in cash
- Three motor vehicles
- Several pieces of high-end jewelry.
Both Medina and Almodovar were ailed on charges of first degree possession of a controlled dangerous substance with the intent to distribute and possession of a handgun while committing a narcotics offense and various other narcotics offenses.
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