Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino announced that members of the Atlantic City Task Force and federal agents of U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) have arrested three alleged heroin traffickers from New York City and seized 3 ½ kilos of heroin.
The following men were arrested June 15, in Atlantic City, by members of the Atlantic City Task Force (ACTF) and federal agents of HSI on charges of first-degree possession of heroin with intent to distribute, second-degree conspiracy to distribute heroin, second-degree possession of heroin with intent to distribute within 500 feet of the Atlantic City Boardwalk, and third-degree heroin possession:
Steven Rodriguez, 22, of Queens, N.Y.,
Edwin Gomez, 31, of Brooklyn, N.Y., and
Steven Torres, 24, of Brooklyn, N.Y.
An investigation by the partnering agencies revealed that a drug trafficking organization was transporting heroin from Mexico to the New York City area, and subsequently trafficking large quantities of heroin into Atlantic City.
Through the investigation, the agencies developed information that the defendants would be delivering a large amount of heroin to a location on the beach block of Saint James Place. When the three men arrived in a parking lot on the street about 1 p.m. on June 15, they were immediately placed under arrest.
Approximately 3 ½ kilograms of heroin, wrapped in plastic bags, were seized from the vehicle. The heroin appears to have been laced with fentanyl.
“The heroin seized in this case has a value of nearly $300,000 if sold in bulk, and could have been cut, packaged, and sold on the street for upwards of $1 million,” said Attorney General Porrino. “By putting these alleged heroin traffickers in prison, the Atlantic City Task Force and HSI cut off a major supply line of heroin into Atlantic City and rescued lives that might have been lost to this poison.”
All three defendants are lodged in the Atlantic County Jail, where they are awaiting detention hearings.
The first-degree drug charge carries a sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $500,000. Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $150,000, while the third-degree charge carries a sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $75,000.
The charges are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.