| TRENTON – Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman announced that the Division of Criminal Justice has obtained an indictment charging seven alleged members of a drug ring with conspiring to operate heroin mills inside two apartments in Paterson. The indictment stems from an investigation by the New Jersey State Police, which led to arrests of six of the defendants on March 29, 2014.
On the day of the arrests, state troopers, led by detectives of the State Police Drug Trafficking North Unit, searched two apartments in Paterson where the defendants allegedly operated heroin mills, as well as three vehicles allegedly used by the defendants to transport narcotics. As a result of the searches, the State Police seized approximately a pound of heroin and two illegal handguns, one of which was stolen.
“The heroin and handguns seized in this case speak to the grave danger posed by these alleged drug dealers,” said Acting Attorney General Hoffman. “Heroin and illegal firearms are the twin scourges that are wracking our communities with addiction, overdoses and drug-related gun violence.”
“Through their excellent work, the State Police brought us a strong conspiracy case and seized enough heroin and related paraphernalia for milling heroin to charge the co-conspirators with first- and second-degree drug offenses,” said Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice. “Because of their conduct, these defendants now face lengthy prison sentences.”
“This was an outstanding investigation spearheaded by our Drug Trafficking North Unit,” said Colonel Rick Fuentes, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “These indictments send the strong, positive message to our communities that we will continue to root out these operations and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”
The Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau obtained a 15-count state grand jury indictment on Friday, Nov. 21, charging the following seven individuals as indicated:
- Manuel E. Perez-Guerrero, 27, of Paterson. Conspiracy (2nd degree), Maintaining a Heroin Production Facility (1st degree), Possession of Heroin with Intent to Distribute (1st and 2nd degree), Unlawful Possession of a Handgun (2 counts, 2nd degree), Possession of a Firearm While Committing a Drug Offense (2 counts, 2nd degree), Possession of a Stolen Firearm (3rd degree), Possession of Heroin (3rd degree), Money Laundering (3rd degree), and Additional Drug and Weapons Offenses (4th degree).
- Jose Romero-Rivera, 41, of Paterson (aka Luis Manuel Tejeda Chalas). Conspiracy (2nd degree), Maintaining a Heroin Production Facility (1st degree), Possession of Heroin with Intent to Distribute (1st degree), Unlawful Possession of a Handgun (2 counts, 2nd degree), Possession of a Firearm While Committing a Drug Offense (2 counts, 2nd degree), Possession of a Stolen Firearm (3rd degree), Possession of Heroin (3rd degree), Possession of a Firearm as a Convicted Felon (2nd degree), and Additional Drug and Weapons Offenses (4th degree).
- Franklin Mejia, 43, of Paterson. Conspiracy (2nd degree), Maintaining a Heroin Production Facility (1st degree), Possession of Heroin with Intent to Distribute (1st degree), Unlawful Possession of a Handgun (2 counts, 2nd degree), Possession of a Firearm While Committing a Drug Offense (2 counts, 2nd degree), Possession of a Stolen Firearm (3rd degree), Possession of Heroin (3rd degree), and Additional Drug and Weapons Offenses (4th degree).
- Juan E. Perez-Guerrero, 22, of Paterson, (Manuel’s brother). Conspiracy (2nd degree), Possession of Heroin with Intent to Distribute (2nd degree), Possession of Heroin (3rd degree), and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia with Intent to Distribute (4th degree).
- Lakey S. Guerra-Pujols, 29, of Oakfield, N.Y. Conspiracy (2nd degree), Possession of Heroin with Intent to Distribute (2nd degree), Possession of Heroin (3rd degree), and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia with Intent to Distribute (4th degree).
- Alexsander Padro, 23, of Lawrence, Mass. Conspiracy (2nd degree), Possession of Heroin with Intent to Distribute (2nd degree), Possession of Heroin (3rd degree), and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia with Intent to Distribute (4th degree).
- Rosaline Engracia Ulloa, 23, of Paterson (wife of Manuel Perez-Guerrero). Conspiracy (2nd degree), Money Laundering (3rd degree), Possession of Drug Paraphernalia with Intent to Distribute (4th degree), and Possession of Hollow-Point Bullets (4th degree).
Deputy Attorney General Jamie Picard presented the indictment to the state grand jury for the Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau. Detective Sgt. Vittorio Flora was the lead detective for the New Jersey State Police Drug Trafficking North Unit. The Passaic County Sheriff’s Office assisted in making the arrests and conducting the searches.
The six male defendants were arrested on March 29, 2014, when State Police detectives conducted searches of the alleged heroin mills and three vehicles used by the defendants. At Romero-Rivera’s apartment in the 200 block of Spring Street in Paterson, they seized nearly five ounces of heroin and numerous items of paraphernalia used for heroin milling, including grinders, masks, wax folds and empty kilo wrappers. The heroin was packaged as 146 bricks. Each brick is a bundle of roughly 50 single-dose wax folds of heroin packaged for street distribution. Also seized at that location were a stolen .45-caliber Ruger semi-automatic pistol, a loaded .45-caliber magazine, and a silencer for the gun.
When detectives searched Manuel Perez-Guerrero’s apartment in the first block of 18th Avenue in Paterson, they seized $16,841 in cash and numerous items of paraphernalia used for heroin milling, including a kilo press, stamps, a scale and cutting agents. The windows of the apartment were covered with black garbage bags, a technique used at heroin mills to avoid police detection. Detectives found a.40-caliber Glock handgun and illegal hollow-point bullets.
Two of the vehicles that were searched had hidden compartments that opened electronically. Detectives seized more than five ounces of heroin from a hidden compartment in a Nissan Quest used by the defendants, along with a Taurus .38-caliber revolver and four hollow-point bullets. They seized 160 bricks of heroin and a box of bullets from the hidden compartment of a Ford Explorer, which Manuel Perez-Guerrero was driving when he was stopped by detectives in Hackensack and arrested. Guerra-Pujols was a passenger in the vehicle at the time.
First-degree crimes carry a sentence of 10 to 20 years in prison. First-degree possession with intent to distribute carries a fine of up to $500,000, while maintaining a heroin production facility carries a fine of up to $750,000. Second-degree crimes carry a sentence of five to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $150,000. The charge of possession of a firearm as a convicted felon carries a mandatory five years of parole ineligibility, while illegal possession of a handgun carries a mandatory period of parole ineligibility equal to one-third to one-half of the sentence imposed or 3 ½ years, whichever is greater. Third-degree crimes carry a sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000, while fourth-degree crimes carry a sentence of up to 18 months in prison and a $10,000 fine.
The indictment is merely an accusation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The indictment was handed up on Friday, Nov. 21, to Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Bergen County, where the defendants will be arraigned at a later date.
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