Heroin, Cocaine, Meth & Gun Distribution Ring in NJ
The Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office announced earlier this week that they have arrested and charged twenty people with various weapons and drug related offenses. These charges stem from a five month long investigation into a what the authorities are calling a Central Jersey drug distribution ring. The investigation was called Operation Bird Cage.
The Middlesex, Bergen and Somerset County prosecutors offices were all heavily involved in the operation. According to nj.com, throughout the investigation the authorities were able to uncover various different types drugs and weapons being distributed, including but not limited to heroin, methamphetamine, Oxycodone pills and cocaine. In all, the authorities seized 1 kilo of cocaine, 1 kilo of methamphetamine, 1 pound of marijuana, 2010 folds of heroin, 298 Oxycodone pills, 6 Roxycodone pills, 48 morphine pills, 15 ecstasy pills, 247 suboxone strips, various drug packing paraphernalia, including a kilo-press and 19 weapons, including assault firearms.
The Defendants arrested include individuals from Hillsborough, Bound Brook, Elizabeth, South Bound Brook, Dunellen, South River, Piscataway, New York City, Rahway, Union Beach, South Plainfield and a couple of individuals from Florida. Michael Robertson, the Somerset County Prosecutor, stated that in addition to assistance from local police departments throughout New Jersey, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Jersey HIDTA Group 3, K-9 units from Bound Brook and local police in Houston, Texas, and Greenville, South Carolina all assisted as well.
Another Drug Distribution Ring Dismantled in New Jersey
Some of the major charges handed down include being the leader of a drug trafficking network, racketeering, unlawful possession of a weapon, drug distribution and money laundering. The most serious charge handed down is the leader of a drug trafficking network. If convicted, this offense requires a life sentence, with a thirty year parole ineligibility period. Just to show how serious the penalties are, they are equivalent to those of a homicide. NJSA 2C:35-3, which is the governing statute in New Jersey for being the leader of a drug trafficking network, states in pertinent part that:
A person is a leader of a narcotics trafficking network if he conspires with two or more other persons in a scheme or course of conduct to unlawfully manufacture, distribute, dispense, bring into or transport in this State methamphetamine, lysergic acid diethylamide, phencyclidine, gamma hydroxybutyrate, flunitrazepam or any controlled dangerous substance classified in Schedule I or II, or any controlled substance analog thereof as a financier, or as an organizer, supervisor or manager of at least one other person.
Drug Distribution Lawyer in Somerset County NJ
Keith Oliver Criminal Law defend clients accused of crimes like heroin distribution, marijuana possession, the unlawful possession of a weapon, aggravated assault and possession of a weapon for unlawful purpose in courts throughout New Jersey. If you have found yourself being charged with a serious criminal offense and would like to speak to one of our attorneys about your options, then please contact us at 908-533-1064. We offer free in-depth consultations, where one of our attorneys will go over the specific facts of your case and give you our honest opinion on how we can be of assistance. So, if you have any questions whatsoever, please do not hesitate to contact us.
For more information on this bust, please checkout nj.com’s article labeled 20 charged in Central Jersey drug, gun distribution ring.
