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Police & Fire
'Large-Scale' Drug Traffickers Wanted In Berks County: DA 'Large-Scale' Drug Traffickers Wanted In Berks County: DA
'Large-Scale' Drug Traffickers Wanted In Berks County: DA Two members of an alleged Berks-based "large-scale drug trafficking organization" are still on the run, according to the District Attorney's Office.  Of the 29 men charged as part of the DA's "Operation Knockout" last month, all except for 44-year-old Jeffrey Kanelos and 34-year-old Moises Franco are in custody, authorities said.  Both men are Reading residents and face multiple felony charges including corrupt organizations and conspiracy, said officials.  Roughly $1.5 million in cocaine, fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other drugs were seized from properties across Berks Co…

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by Mac Bullock
News
Pounds Of Cocaine Seized In Pennsylvania Helps Convict Last Member Of Puerto Rican Drug Ring Pounds Of Cocaine Seized In Pennsylvania Helps Convict Last Member Of Puerto Rican Drug Ring
Pounds Of Cocaine Seized In Pennsylvania Helps Convict Last Member Of Puerto Rican Drug Ring The seventh and final member of a drug smuggling ring that ran from Puerto Rico to Pennsylvania — has been convicted, according to a release by the US Department of Justice on Nov. 16.  Moniqua Ramirez, 44, has been found guilty of conspiracy to distribute cocaine, according to U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam. She was convicted at the end of a three-day jury trial before U.S. District Court Judge Jennifer P. Wilson on Wednesday, Nov. 15. Ramirez, along with six other Puerto Ricans conspired to smuggle kilograms of cocaine from Puerto Rico into Central Pennsylvania using the US Post…

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by Jillian Pikora
Police & Fire
Fentanyl Drug Bust: Pipeline From Philadelphia To Lancaster Closed, DA Says Fentanyl Drug Bust: Pipeline From Philadelphia To Lancaster Closed, DA Says
Fentanyl Drug Bust: Pipeline From Philadelphia To Lancaster Closed, DA Says Charges filed in a drug bust that has halted the "Philadelphia to Lancaster fentanyl pipeline," District Attorney Heather Adams announced on Wednesday, Nov. 8.  Louis Angel Cruz, 42 of the 600 block of S. Ann Street, Lancaster; Michael Beck, 41 of the first block of Crystal Drive, Manheim; and Heather Wagner, 30 of the first block of Crystal Drive, Manheim; were all charged on Oct. 31 in connection with an organized drug operation running from Philadelphia to Lancaster, the District Attorney's office detailed in a release. The Drug Task Force and Lancaster City Bureau of Police be…

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by Jillian Pikora
Police & Fire
7 Suspected Drug Dealers With 'Links To Mexican Cartel' Sought By Berks DA 7 Suspected Drug Dealers With 'Links To Mexican Cartel' Sought By Berks DA
7 Suspected Drug Dealers With 'Links To Mexican Cartel' Sought By Berks DA A week after "Operation Knockout" saw 29 accused drug dealers charged in Berks County, prosecutors say seven of them are still on the run.  Roughly $1.5 million in cocaine, fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other substances were seized by authorities in recent weeks as part of their effort targeting a "large-scale drug trafficking organization" based in and around Reading, officials have said.  The organization, according to the DA's Office, was being supplied by a source who had "direct links to a Mexican cartel." Only 18 of the suspects were in custody when authorities announced "Operation…

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by Mac Bullock
Police & Fire
29 Charged, $1.5 Million In Drugs Seized In Massive Berks County Raid: DA 29 Charged, $1.5 Million In Drugs Seized In Massive Berks County Raid: DA
29 Charged, $1.5 Million In Drugs Seized In Massive Berks County Raid: DA Several dozen people face criminal charges and a purported $1.5 million in drugs have been seized as part of "Operation Knockout" in Berks County, according to District Attorney John T. Adams' Office.  The operation targeted a "large-scale drug trafficking organization" based in and around Reading with alleged ties to "a Mexican cartel," said prosecutors.  Police said they began investigating individual dealers in early 2023 but sought court approval for electronic surveillance after they "determined that these individuals were part of an even larger organization." …

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by Mac Bullock
Police & Fire
Pennsylvania Man Arrested In Atlantic City With Heroin, Coke, Pot, Ecstasy: Police Pennsylvania Man Arrested In Atlantic City With Heroin, Coke, Pot, Ecstasy: Police
Pennsylvania Man Arrested In Atlantic City With Heroin, Coke, Pot, Ecstasy: Police Atlantic City police conducted surveillance that resulted in the arrest of two men — including one from Philadelphia — and the recovery of a handgun and assorted drugs, authorities said. On Wednesday, Sept. 20, Detectives Christopher Dodson and James Barrett were conducting surveillance in the first block of south Mansion Avenue when they allegedly observed Malik Jones of Atlantic City and Camron Izzard of Philadelphia appearing to be dealing drugs, police said. Detectives watched as Jones was inside of a parked vehicle with Izzard. The detectives converged after finding that Jones had an …

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
Pair Arrested In Atlantic City With Heroin, Coke, Pot, Ecstasy: Police Pair Arrested In Atlantic City With Heroin, Coke, Pot, Ecstasy: Police
Pair Arrested In Atlantic City With Heroin, Coke, Pot, Ecstasy: Police Atlantic City police conducted surveillance that resulted in the arrest of two men and the recovery of a handgun and assorted drugs, authorities said. On Wednesday, Sept. 20, Detectives Christopher Dodson and James Barrett were conducting surveillance in the first block of south Mansion Avenue when they allegedly observed Malik Jones of Atlantic City and Camron Izzard of Philadelphia appearing to be dealing drugs, police said. Detectives watched as Jones was inside of a parked vehicle with Izzard. The detectives converged after finding that Jones had an active warrant for his arrest from P…

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by Jon Craig
News
$1.6 Million Fentanyl Arrest Of NY Man In PA: AG $1.6 Million Fentanyl Arrest Of NY Man In PA: AG
$1.6 Million Fentanyl Arrest Of NY Man In PA: AG A New York man is accused of bringing almost half a million doses of fentanyl into Pennsylvania, authorities say.  Yan Carlos Pichardo Cepeda, 27, was arrested by state agents and Allegheny County authorities and arraigned on Friday, Sept. 1, Attorney General Michelle Henry's Office said.  Pichardo Cepeda was spotted avoiding police officers and canine units when he arrived in Pittsburgh from New York, prosecutors said. He consented to a search of his backpack, where police said they found a kilogram of fentanyl. Eight more kilograms of fentanyl — or 450,000 doses — wer…

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by Mac Bullock
News
Two 'Upper-Level' PA Drug Dealers Nabbed In $1.5M Fentanyl Bust: AG Henry Two 'Upper-Level' PA Drug Dealers Nabbed In $1.5M Fentanyl Bust: AG Henry
Two 'Upper-Level' PA Drug Dealers Nabbed In $1.5M Fentanyl Bust: AG Henry A pair of Allentown-based drug dealers are behind bars and more than $1.5 million worth of fentanyl was seized during a raid last weekend, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office.  Wilson Jose Rosario, 33, and Luis Manuel Ventura, 21 — both alleged by prosecutors to be "upper-level" traffickers — were taken into custody by a team of city, county, and state authorities on Saturday, Aug. 26, officials said.  Officers, detectives, and agents with the AG's Bureau of Narcotics Investigation claimed to seize 11 pounds of fentanyl, or "nearly 165,000 doses of th…

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by Mac Bullock
Police & Fire
Philadelphia Man Caught With Crack In Someone Else's Car Resists Arrest In Lititz, Police Say Philadelphia Man Caught With Crack In Someone Else's Car Resists Arrest In Lititz, Police Say
Philadelphia Man Caught With Crack In Someone Else's Car Resists Arrest In Lititz, Police Say A 41-year-old Philadelphia man was apparently not in the mood to cooperate with officers who stopped in Lititz and found his crack cocaine, according to a release by police on Wednesday, July 19, 2023. Helbert E. Mercado was stopped by Lititz Borough police for a traffic violation in the 200 block of East Market Street at 12:36 p.m. on July 9, 2023, according to the police release.  Mercado gave the officers a false name and "physically resisted officers' attempts to place him under arrest," as stated in the release.  The officers soon "discovered that Mercado did not obtain perm…

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by Jillian Pikora
Police & Fire
Guns, Drugs Found In 'Stash House' Above Philly Daycare, Authorities Say Guns, Drugs Found In 'Stash House' Above Philly Daycare, Authorities Say
Guns, Drugs Found In 'Stash House' Above Philly Daycare, Authorities Say Eleven guns and about $350,000 worth of illegal drugs were seized in a raid on an alleged "stash house" just upstairs from a North Philadelphia daycare, according to prosecutors.  Justin Pearcy, 36, is charged with multiple felony drug and weapons offenses, said Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry's Office in a release.  Charges were filed after police executed search warrants on the second-floor apartment above a Hunting Park Avenue daycare center, as well as a vehicle parked on Pulaski Avenue, authorities said.   During the search of the alleged "stash h…

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by Mac Bullock
Police & Fire
Dealer Gets 14 Years Without Parole In Historic Jersey Shore Drug Bust, Brother Up Next Dealer Gets 14 Years Without Parole In Historic Jersey Shore Drug Bust, Brother Up Next
Dealer Gets 14 Years Without Parole In Historic Jersey Shore Drug Bust, Brother Up Next UPDATE: The second of two brothers who pleaded guilty in the largest drug bust in Atlantic County history -- 45 pounds of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine combined -- was the first to be sentenced. Fourteen years was the best that Ricardo Clavijo, 42, of Egg Harbor Township could get from a plea deal with the federal government. He'll have to serve just about all of it, too, because there’s no parole in the federal prison system. Clavijo’s brother, Christopher Gonzalez of Pleasantville, is up for sentencing next. The brothers had more than 20 kilos combined of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine…

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by Jerry DeMarco