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Thursday, jan 9
Tag:
Cocaine
News
NJ 'Hot Shot' Murderess Found Dead In PA Prison Cell 3 Days After Probation Violation Arrest
A New Jersey woman convicted of murder, who admitted to injecting a man with a fatal mix of cocaine and bleach, was found dead in her cell at the State Correctional Institution at Muncy, officials announced. Lisa Marie Stavish, 41, a Passaic, NJ native, was discovered unresponsive in her cell on Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, according to Wendy Nicholas, superintendent of SCI Muncy. Prison staff attempted life-saving measures until emergency responders arrived, but Stavish was pronounced dead at 6:07 a.m. Stavish was serving a 7-to-20-year sentence for third-degree murder in the death of David…
Police & Fire
Wharton Man Gets Decade For Dealing Cocaine: Prosecutor
A 38-year-old Wharton man was sentenced to 10 years in state prison on Friday, Dec. 6 after previously pleading guilty to distributing cocaine, authorities said. Paul Agosto was originally arrested in 2022 following an investigation by the Sussex County Guns, Gangs and Narcotics Task Force along with multiple other law enforcement agencies including the United States Postal Service and the Morris County Prosecutors Office, Acting Sussex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray said. Agosto pled guilty to possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, conspiring with others to…
Police & Fire
Violent NJ Human Trafficking Rings Dismantled Where Women, Teens Were Forced Into Sex: AG
Seven people have been arrested in the dismantling two human trafficking rings, one in North Jersey and one in South Jersey, authorities said. The rings were based in Essex County and Cumberland County, state Attorney General Matthew Platkin said at a news conference on Tuesday, Dec. 3. Khailah Meekins, 21 and Donte Barkley, 28, both Newark residents, trafficked two 15-year-olds and a 13-year-old in Essex County, Platkin said. Meekins and Barkley arranged sexual encounters for the girls through mobile apps that included online ads featuring nude photos of the minors. The girls would be…
Police & Fire
Post-Drug Deal Arrest Nets Cocaine From North Bergen Man Wanted On 8 Warrants In Guttenberg: PD
A 42-year-old North Bergen man was arrested and charged with possessing cocaine on Tuesday, Oct. 29, in Guttenberg, authorities said. Officers conducted a traffic stop after observing the vehicle's driver, later identified as Olinsser Vera, engage in what appeared to be drug transaction, Guttenberg police said. Officers believed the driver was engaged in criminal activity and requested the Bayonne Police Department's K9 unit, police said. The narcotics K9 conducted a free air sniff of the vehicle, during which the K-9 indicated to the presence of narcotics within the vehicle, police sa…
Police & Fire
Bronx Man Possessed Cocaine, Had Active Warrant: Mt Olive Police
A 41-year-old Bronx man was arrested and charged with possessing cocaine in Flanders on Friday, Oct. 25, authorities said. At 10:05 p.m., officers involved a Nissan Altima merge onto Rt. 206 in an unsafe manner, Mt. Olive police said in a release. Police initiated a traffic stop and discovered the driver, Christopher Hildago had a warrant out for his arrest in Wayne, officers said. Hidalgo was placed under arrest and a search of his person produced a plastic baggie containing suspected cocaine, police said. Hidalgo was transported to police headquarters where he was charged with P…
Police & Fire
Ex-Con Driving On 2 Flats Found With Gun, Hollow-Point Bullets At NJ School: Cops
A 49-year-old Burlington Township ex-convict was found with a loaded gun and drugs at a Somerset County school one early-morning this week, authorities said. Police in Franklin Township were notified around 6:10 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 15, that someone was driving on two flat tires on the property of a local private school, Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald said. Arriving officers found Quincy K. Clark coming out of the bushes with his hands in his pockets, they said. Officers conducting the investigation found a high-capacity ammunition magazine on Clark, and a more extensive sea…
Police & Fire
Call During Sex Sparked Arrest Of Jabrill Peppers, 4X NJ High School Football Champ: Report
Details have been released in the arrest of Jabrill Peppers. A victim in Braintree, MA, told police Saturday, Oct. 5 that the 29-year-old New England Patriots safety became upset when someone called her phone while they were having sex, NBC10 says citing a police report. Peppers, a New Jersey native and four-time state high school football champion, smashed her head against the wall, pushed her down the stairs, and choked her at least six times, NBC10 said. Citing court paperwork, CBS said the athlete answered the door without a shirt on saying, "I know what is going on." He…
Police & Fire
Former Flemington Councilman Gets Four Years For Distributing Cocaine: Prosecutor
A former councilman in Flemington was sentenced to four years in prison on Friday, Sept. 20 after pleading guilty to distributing cocaine, authorities said. Malik Johnston a.k.a. Pippin Folk has faced numerous legal problems. In April, Johnston, 47, was indicted for theft for stealing $1,000 from the Flemington Democratic Club's bank account at a branch in Bridgewater, Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renée Robeson said. The theft charges were dismissed after Johnson paid restitution, Robeson said. Johnston was originally arrested last October while he was still serving on the town council…
News
NJ Women Drugged With Meth-Infused Tequila, Sexually Assaulted By 'Sugar Daddy,' Complaint Says
A newly obtained criminal complaint details how a 40-year-old Pennsylvania man drugged and sexually assaulted six women during their dates from hell at his home. All of the women, including two from New Jersey, met Andrew Gallo, of Levittown, PA on sugardaddymeet.com. Gallo appeared to have followed the exact same playbook, police papers show: He'd brag about his bartending skills then pour them a drink from open bottles and hop in the shower shower. When he got out, he'd give the women a tour of his home, telling them how he rebuilt it after a fire. It was somewhere around this point …
Police & Fire
Rockaway Man Distributed Guns, Cocaine: Prosecutor
A 32-year-old Rockaway Borough man was arrested and charged on Tuesday, Sept. 3 with distributing cocaine and a firearm in Morris County over the course of four months authorities said. Between April an August 2024, Santiago Escobar distributed over 5 ounces of cocaine, a Taurus handgun, and hollow nose bullets in Rockaway, Acting Morris County Prosecutor Bradford Seabury, Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Chief of Detectives Robert McNally, and Rockaway Borough Police Department Chief of Police Conrad Pepperman said. On Tuesday, approximately 100 grams of coca…
Police & Fire
Long Island Man Busted For Dealing $27K Worth Of Cocaine In Morristown: Prosecutors
A 30-year-old Long Island man was arrested in Morris County last week and charged with distributing cocaine in Morristown, authorities said. Alex Bravo-Castro, a Uniondale resident, sold 350 grams of suspected cocaine in Morristown on Thursday, Aug. 29, Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll and Chief of Detectives Robert McNally said. The street value of the drugs was $27,000, authorities said. Bravo-Castro was charged with multiple counts of intention to distribute cocaine in the amount of 5 oz. or more, authorities said.
Police & Fire
$1.1M In Drugs, 5 Firearms, $65K Seized From NJ Man, Prosecutor Says
A 35-year-old Mercer County man is facing a slew of charges after investigators uncovered $1.1 million in drugs, five handguns, and $65,000 in cash from him, authorities said. James Nalbone Jr., 35, of Hamilton Township, was arrested on Wednesday, Aug. 7, following a month-long investigation, Acting Mercer County Prosecutor Theresa L. Hilton said. Detectives detained Nalbone at his home on Byron Avenue and executed a search warrant, Hilton said. Sgt. Tom Paglione's K-9 partner, Indy, gave positive indications of a drug odor at multiple locations within the premises, poli…
Police & Fire
Texas Man Busted For Cocaine: Franklin Borough PD
A 32-year-old Texas man was arrested last month and charged with possessing cocaine in Franklin Borough, authorities said. Gavino Briones-Arredondo, a San Diego resident, in the southern part of the Lone Star State, was found to be in possession of cocaine, following a motor vehicle stop on Tuesday, July 16, Franklin Borough police said. He was charged with possession of cocaine along with other motor vehicle summonses, police said. He was released pending a court appearance in Sussex County Superior Court, police said.
Police & Fire
Wanted NJ Child Abuser Busted With Police Uniform, Handcuffs In NY Traffic Stop, Cops Say
A man who had been wanted out of New Jersey on child abuse charges was arrested in a New York traffic stop last week, when authorities found him with police uniforms and handcuffs, they said. Joseph Zuziela, 43, of Branchburg, NJ, was stopped in Oceanside, NY on Thursday night, Aug. 8. Somerset County Prosecutor's Fugitive Task Force Unit Nassau County Police said officers stopped Zuziela’s vehicle at around 11:45 p.m. near Merrick and Oceanside roads. Inside, they reportedly found a trove of law enforcement paraphernalia, including police uniforms, handcuffs, a gold badge, brass knu…
Police & Fire
Intoxicated Driver Found With Cocaine In Sussex County, Police Say
A Roseland man was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated and possessing cocaine on Friday, July 19 in Byram Township, authorities said. Officers observed a vehicle failing to maintain its lane on Lackawanna Drive and initiated a vehicle stop, Byram Township Police said in a release. The driver, Vincent Radice, appeared to be intoxicated and proceeded to fail several field sobriety tests, police said. Radice was arrested for driving under the influence and while searching his vehicle, officers found a bag of cocaine, police said. Radice later failed two breath tests at police h…
Police & Fire
Morris County Man Must Pay $51K, Sentenced To 7 Years Behind Bars For OD Death: Prosecutor
A 28-year-old Morris Plains man was sentenced to 7 years in prison on Friday, July 26, for his role in a fatal overdose in Whippany in February 2023. In February 2023, a 28-year-old man, identified as T.H. was found dead at a residence in Whippany, after overdosing on a lethal toxicity of cocaine, fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl, Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll, Chief of Detectives Robert McNally, and Hanover Township Police Chief Michael Loock said. An investigation revealed Anthony Dello-Russo distributed drugs the fatal drugs to T.H. a day before his death, authorities sai…
News
Mass Amounts Of Cocaine, $17K Seized From Mom-Son Duo In Bloomfield, Newark SWAT Raids: Cops
Detectives have put a stop to one family's cocaine distribution business in a series of raids across Essex County Tuesday, July 9, authorities said. 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…
Police & Fire
Former Flemington Councilman Pleads Guilty To Distributing Cocaine: Prosecutor
A former councilman in Flemington pleaded guilty to distributing cocaine on Wednesday, June 19 and faces up to five years in prison as part of his plea agreement, authorities said. Malik Johnston a.k.a. Pippin Folk has faced numerous legal problems over the past year. In April, Johnston, 47, was indicted for theft for stealing $1,000 from the club's bank account at a branch in Bridgewater, Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renée Robeson said. At the time of the transaction, Johnston was a former officer of the club and did not have permission to make the cash withdrawal and keep …
News
Undercover Sting Leads To Prostitution Arrest At NJ Go-Go Bar With Unsavory History
A 36-year-old Belleville woman has been arrested after she offered an undercover officer sexual favors in exchange for money at a popular Secaucus go-go bar, police said. Acting on a tip that prostitution was still an ongoing issue at AJ’s Go-Go Bar on Secaucus Road, Secaucus police officers were sent to the establishment — undercover, Chief Dennis Miller said. Sure enough, Dilcia Nunez Gomez offered one officer sexual favors in exchange for money, Miller said. She was charged with engaging in prostitution and promoting prostitution. In April 2021, multiple AJ's employees were arreste…
Police & Fire
Driver Blacked Out At Intersection Had Coke, Smack In Car: Lyndhurst PD
An unlicensed Kearny driver was released after Lyndhurst police said they found him blacked out behind the wheel with cocaine in the car and empty heroin folds in his pocket. Detectives Matt Giunta and Tom McSweeney found traffic at a standstill in the area of Page Avenue and Ridge Road in the middle of the afternoon, Detective Lt. Vincent Auteri said. Drivers were maneuvering their vehicles around a 2002 Kia K5 that was stopped at the light, the lieutenant said. The detectives at first thought the sedan was disabled. Then they found 57-year-old Anthony DeSantis asleep at the wheel, with t…
Police & Fire
NJ Drug Dealer Found With Ammo, Heroin Sentenced For Raping Child, Prosecutor Says
A 32-year-old Jefferson Township man was sentenced to 23 years in prison on Friday, May 31, after pleading guilty to raping a child, authorities said. Police initially began investigating Michael Figueroa for drugs, Morris County Prosecutor Robert Carroll, Morris County Chief of Detectives Robert McNally, and Jefferson Township Police Chief Paul Castimore said. A search of his home turned up much more: Handguns, a rifle, 11 bricks of heroin, a bag of cocaine, ammunition and a digital scale, authorities said. Figueroa was hit with weapons and drug charges, authorities said.&n…
Police & Fire
Overdose Death Of Lodi Man, 62, Leads To SWAT Raid, Arrest
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: A Lodi man was jailed Tuesday in connection with the overdose death of a 62-year-old drug user last month from cocaine laced with fentanyl, authorities said. A Bergen County Regional SWAT team led a May 21 raid on the Victor Street apartment of Randy Lantigua, 25. The early-morning raid and arrest stem from an investigation into the death of James White of Lodi, who was found unresponsive from an overdose in the bedroom of his home on April 6, Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said. Raised in Wood-Ridge, James Anthony White was a self-employed contract pain…
Police & Fire
Feds: Nine Sex, Money, Murder Members Nabbed With Fentanyl, Coke, More At Open-Air Drug Market
Nine reputed members and associates of the Sex, Money, Murder street gang were charged by Homeland Security agents in New Jersey with peddling fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine at an open-air drug market. Working with local law enforcers, agents with HSI Investigations Newark homed in on a neighborhood on West 3rd Street in Plainfield where the subset of the Bloods controlled the drug trade, U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger said. For months, they witnessed and recorded sales, conducted undercover buys -- some by confidential informants -- and analyzed phone records, the U.S. attorney said. …
Police & Fire
Mahwah Officer Nabs Trio With Loaded Gun, Cocaine, More On Route 17: Police
Three Cuban nationals from out of the area were busted by a Mahwah police officer who stopped their tractor on Route 17 and found a loaded gun, cocaine and more, authorities said. Officer Nicole DiPasquale stopped the Peterbilt truck for multiple motor vehicle violations on the southbound highway shortly after 8 a.m. Saturday, April 27, Lt. Michael Blondin said. The occupants gave conflicting accounts of where they were coming from and headed to, leading to a search request that was granted by the driver, Karel Reza-Perez, a 39-year-old Louisville, KY, resident, the lieutenant said. The se…
Police & Fire
Speeding Route 80 Driver From Paterson Had 20 Pounds Of Cocaine, Nebraska State Troopers Say
A Paterson driver who was stopped for speeding on Route 80 in Nebraska was caught with 20 pounds of cocaine, state troopers said. Pablo Suruy Hernandez, 40, had the coke stashed in various compartments of his BMW X5 when he was stopped in York County around noontime Saturday, March 23, according to the Nebraska State Patrol. Hernandez remained held Tuesday in the York County Jail, some 1,300 miles from Paterson. He's charged with both possession and possession with the intent to deliver the drugs.
Police & Fire
Paroled NJ Drug Dealer Admits Trafficking Kilo Of Coke Armed With Trio Of Guns
𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: An ex-con from Newark who spent 13 years in state prison will be doing federal time after admitting that he trafficked a kilo of cocaine while packing three guns. Carlos Ovidio Gonzalez, 36, was paroled in March 2022 after serving time for drug dealing and illegal weapons possession convictions out of Morris County in 2009, records show. Gonzalez faces significantly more time now that he's pleaded guilty in federal court to having and conspiring to sell coke and fentanyl and illegally possessing guns and ammo, among other counts. Unlike the state of New Jersey, the federal prison s…
Police & Fire
Tardy Rochelle Park Hotel Guest Busted With Cocaine, Pills, Knife: Police
A Rochelle Park hotel guest who overstayed his welcome was arrested after officers found cocaine and pills for sale in his room, authorities said. Police responding to a call of a guest not leaving by checkout time at the Ramada by Wyndham Hotel on West Passaic Street found Anwar Mnawer, 33, of the Bronx disoriented shortly after 1 p.m. Monday, March 18, Capt. James M. DePreta said. “In plain view inside the room, officers observed a large folding knife, prescription pills, a baggie containing a white powdery substance believed to be cocaine, and miscellaneous drug paraphernalia,” the …
Police & Fire
Accused Dealer Charged With Fentanyl-Laced Crack Death Of Jersey City Man At Lyndhurst Hotel
An accused drug dealer from Bloomfield provided the drugs that killed a user from Jersey City at a Lyndhurst motel, authorities charged. Alberto Delgado, 43, was accused of selling the fentanyl-laced crack that killed 54-year-old Luke Revell after he smoked it at the Winslow Motor Hotel just off eastbound Route 3. Delgado had more than a pound and a half of the drugs in a storage unit when detectives from the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office searched it, according to a complaint on file in Superior Court in Hackensack. They also learned that Delgado had communicated with Revell by ce…
Police & Fire
Haledon Police Raid Clandestine Ecstasy Lab In Center Of Town, Seize Resident, 23
Haledon police busted a 23-year-old resident who they said mixed toxic and potentially fatal chemicals to produce homemade Ecstasy in the center of town. Acting on a reliable tip, investigators led by Detective Jeffrey Welsh obtained a search warrant and -- assisted by their department's Special Services Bureau -- hit the clandestine Haledon Avenue lab on Saturday, Feb. 10, Deputy Police Chief George Guzman said. They seized Santiago Zapata Palomeque after finding two five-gallon buckets of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine in his bedroom, the deputy chief said. They also found cocaine, …
Police & Fire
Rochelle Park Detectives Seize Kilo Of Coke, Bust NYC Duo Off Highway
A pair of Rochelle Park detectives nabbed two men with more than a kilo of cocaine, authorities said. Detective Sgt. Jared Shatkin and Detective Nick Mercoun found an older-model Honda Accord with two occupants over a line in a Midland Street parking lot just off Essex Street between Routes 80 and 17 around 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 31, Capt. James M. DePreta said. As they approached, a passenger quickly ducked into a nearby business, he said. The detectives immediately spotted a plastic bag filled with what turned out to be more than two pounds of cocaine on the front seat, DePreta said. …
Police & Fire
Dealer Nabbed With Nearly Pound Of Coke, 100 Fentanyl Pills, Passaic Sheriff Says
A dealer from Paterson had just completed a street sale when Passaic County sheriff's officers seized him and found nearly a pound of cocaine and 100 or so fentanyl pills in his apartment, authorities said. Edwin Garcia-Mendez, 40, also had an AR pellet rifle and various items used to process and package cocaine, including two hydraulic kilo presses and acetone, in his first-floor apartment on East 24th Street, Passaic County Sheriff Richard Berdnik said. Members of the sheriff's Bureau of Narcotics had been watching Garcia-Mendez for several weeks before moving in, Berdnik said. They were…
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