Vanessa Ruschmann, 53, of Somerville, indicted on a charge of possessing cocaine on Nov. 4 in Bound Brook.
Read more...Jeffrey Moklak, 31, of Bridgewater, indicted on a charge of possessing cocaine on Nov. 4 in Bound Brook
Read more...Mario Moklak Jr., 23, of Bridgewater, indicted on a charge of possessing cocaine on Nov. 4 in Bound Brook.
Read more...Jeffrey Welichko, 22, of Montgomery, indicted on a charge of possessing cocaine on Oct. 7 in Bridgewater.
Read more...Aikeem J. Williams, 24, of Bridgeton is charged with official misconduct, possession of marijuana, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of drug paraphernalia. Williams allegedly walked into South Woods with approximately 120 grams of marijuana and then attempted to leave the facility, according to Cumberland County Prosecutor Ron Casella. Williams was detained and a court-authorized search warrant was issued. A search revealed 16 individually wrapped baggies containing marijuana concealed in his Department of Corrections winter jacket, Casella said. A search of his vehicle turned up numerous waxine baggies, which are typically used to package heroin, according to the prosecutor's office.
Williams was committed to the Cumberland County Jail in lieu of $250,000 full cash bail. Williams began his career as a corrections officer in January 2006.
Vincent Washington, 45, of 180 Wittum Ave., and Jay Washington, 60, of 38 Acorn St., were arrested following execution of a search warrant by police at the Wittum Avenue residence, according to officer Charles Youmans, spokesman for Police Commissioner William J . Fitchet. The time of the raid was not immediately available. The two men told authorities they are not related. They were each charged with trafficking in cocaine over 200 grams and violation of a drug free school zone. The Frederick Harris Elementary School on Hartford Terrace is nearby. Youmans said Vincent Washington was also charged with violation of parole. He was released on Sept. 9 after serving 14 years in an Arkansas prison on cocaine trafficking charges. Police seized the five kilos of cocaine or 5,370 grams and $58,402 in cash in the apartment. They were held in lieu of $1 million each on bail over the weekend and were scheduled to be arraigned in Springfield District Court Monday.
Read more...John Virgil Punko and Randy Potts, who were arrested four years ago as part of a $10-million police investigation that targeted the East End Hells Angels.
“For this I'd sit on Christmas Day,” said B.C. Supreme Court Justice Peter Leask.
“This is the get-things-done courtroom.” Punko will be sentenced the week of Jan. 18 and Potts will be sentenced Jan. 25. Last month, Leask dealt a devastating blow to the Crown’s case at the pending drug trial when he ruled the Crown was prohibited from proceeding on criminal-organization charges against two Hells Angels members. Justice Peter Leask granted a defence application that the Crown cannot proceed at trial on charges that allege the East End chapter of the Hells Angels is a criminal organization. The defence argued that a jury at another trial that ended last summer acquitted Potts and Punko of the criminal-organization charges, so they should not be punished twice. Crown prosecutor Martha Devlin Devlin argued that the criminal-organization charges should not be dropped because the judge could not speculate on why the jury came to the verdict it did on the criminal organization charges.
The judge agreed with the defence. “My decision is the Crown is estopped from leading evidence that the East End charter Hells Angels is a criminal organization,” he ruled. The Crown plans to appeal the judge’s ruling but is awaiting the judge’s reasons. Potts and Punkoi had faced a total of nine charges at trial, including two that alleged they directed the production and distribution of methamphetamine in association with or for the benefit of a criminal organization, namely the East End charter of the Hells Angels. Punko pleaded guilty Monday to three charges on the indictment (Count 2, 3 and 4) and Potts pleaded guilty to four charges (Count 6, 7, 8 and 9), including two of cocaine trafficking in Surrey and New Westminster. The case marked the third failed prosecution on criminal-organization charges against the Hells Angels arising from the police investigation code-named E-Pandora, which ended in 2005 with the arrest of six Hells Angels and a dozen associates.
A 10-month trial ended last July with the jury convicting Potts and Punko on weapons charges. The judge found Potts held the arsenal of weapons for the East End Hells Angels, including grenades, a loaded semi-automatic pistol and three other guns.
Potts, 49, was sentenced to a seven years but effectively received a sentence of time served after being granted double credit for four years served in pre-trial custody. Punko, 43, was convicted of the unauthorized possession of a loaded semi-automatic pistol and sentenced to 15 months in jail, plus a consecutive sentence of four years for counselling a police agent to do damage to a Surrey home where Punko was trying to collect a large amount of money from a man. It was effectively a sentence of time served but Punko was recently denied bail by Leask. Potts is free on bail.
Thomas Dewayne Ross of Lincoln was held responsible for the distribution of more than 5 ounces of crack cocaine and at least 1 3/4 ounces of powder cocaine.
He pleaded guilty in September.In a press release, U.S. Attorney Deborah Gilg said Ross's sentence was enhanced due to prior felony convictions for attempted possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and attempted burglary, both from Douglas County.
The prosecution and defense needed four hours Monday to pick 14 jurors out of a pool of more than 40.U.S. District Judge Richard Smoak declared a mistrial in Cooper’s first trial in November when the jury declared themselves hopelessly deadlocked. This jury of 14, including two alternates, is made up of eight women and six men. They will have to decide if Cooper, 35, committed a crime during two telephone calls that lasted less than a minute.“This case is about picking up a telephone and making a simple telephone call,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Gayle Littleton said in her opening statement Monday afternoon.Cooper is charged with a single count of using a telephone May 27 to facilitate the crime of distribution, or possession with intent to distribute, a controlled substance. She faces up to four years in prison.
She is accused of calling a drug dealer to complete a drug transaction between him and her boyfriend, Dr. Michael Reed. Reed, 55, a former surgeon, pleaded guilty to conspiring to possess and distribute cocaine and was sentenced in November to almost five years in prison. He was arrested May 27, along with six other men charged in the conspiracy, after officers served a warrant at his Wild Heron residence.
Littleton said Cooper called Hector Melara, who has been charged in the case, and convinced him to wait 10 minutes before coming to her door with a kilo of cocaine. Prosecutors said Cooper needed Melara to wait until her morning guests left, ensuring the “coast would be clear” to make the transaction at the Wild Heron home.
Melara testified Cooper was a recreational drug user and bought small amounts of cocaine from him every few weeks.
Cooper’s attorney, Jim White, said that while his client was guilty of some things, including buying cocaine, taking the kilo from Melara and being Reed’s girlfriend, she is not guilty of the telephone crime. He told the jury that Cooper’s guests already had left for the morning and Reed had just told her that she was going to pay for and receive $30,000 worth of cocaine. Instead of trying to make the drug transaction go smoother, Cooper needed a few moments to herself to mentally prepare for the situation, White said.
“Those calls were absolutely meaningless,” White said. “They didn’t aid and assist a thing.”Read more...
Man Arrested for Cocaine Stuffed Chicken A man from Guatemala is under arrest after customs inspectors at Dulles International Airport discovered he was carrying a cooked chicken stuffed with more than $4000 worth of cocaine
Cortez R. Arnold, 22, of Markham pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver and was placed on probation for 2½ years. He and the others were accused of having drugs at 17 Grant Ave. in Charleston on March 10.The charge against Arnold was reduced so it no longer required prison time. His probation terms included substance abuse treatment and payment of $4,600 in fines, while jail time was was stayed, meaning he won’t have to serve it if he follows his sentence’s requirements.Circuit Judge Mitchell Shick accepted a plea agreement that Assistant State’s Attorney Tracy Robinson and defense attorney Jeannine Garrett recommended.
Read more...Gipson was arrested on April 3, 2008, at Dan Foley Park and charged with possession of about one pound of crack cocaine. Prosecutors said Vallejo detectives and federal drug enforcement agents also seized more than $1,200 and a loaded handgun from Gipson's vehicle.Gipson has three prior felony drug trafficking convictions involving crack cocaine, authorities said.
Shubb also said the severe sentence was sufficient but not greater than necessary to meet federal sentencing goals for serious drug trafficking crimes.Vallejo police, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration and the Solano County Multijurisdictional Methamphetamine Enforcement Team teamed up on the investigation. The Solano County District Attorney's Office also provided assistance.
35-year-old Filipino is in jail for attempting to smuggle illegal drugs to Peru, the foreign affairs department reported on Friday.The DFA said it received a report from the Philippine Embassy in Santiago, Chile regarding the apprehension of a male Filipino on September 30, 2009."The Filipino national is presently incarcerated at Quencoro Men's Penitentiary at Cusco where he will begin a prison sentence of six years and eight months, including payment of fines, after accepting a plea bargain agreement with the Peruvian authorities," the DFA said in a press statement.
Peruvian authorities nabbed the Filipino national at the Alejandro Velasco Astete Airport while trying to smuggle 6.145 kilos of cocaine alkaloid, which were found inside his hand carry baggage.
"The Filipino was headed for Lima, Peru and to other intermediary points, with Hanoi, Vietnam as the alleged final destination," the DFA said in a statement.
Earlier, two Filipinas were arrested in separate incidents last May and June in Ecuador and Africa for drug trafficking cases."These are seemingly more daring and brazen attempts by drug syndicates in the region to use Filipinos to transport banned substances across international borders," said Philippine Ambassador to Chile, Maria Consuelo Puyat-Reyes.She also stated that the incidents involving Filipino drug mules in Peru and Ecuador are becoming "especially alarming."
Likewise, she warned Filipinos traveling to South America "to be wary of drug syndicates enticing travelers to transport illegal drugs, no matter how lucrative the 'handling' fee may appear.
Alan Edwards and his wife Tina, of Kings Norton, were key players in a sophisticated "carousel" trafficking ring that used the same goods to hide drugs.
A shipment of industrial rollers was employed to hide cocaine, cannabis and the potentially deadly cutting agent phenacetin.But their conspiracy unravelled when a Brussels warehouse employee became suspicious of the goods. He secretly marked the shipment and called in the Belgian authorities when it came through again one week later.A search disclosed the rollers contained 20kg of cocaine, 365kg of herbal cannabis and 10kg of phenacetin. Belgian police contacted the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) who launched a surveillance operation to find out where the drugs were headed.Officers looked on as Alan Edwards drove the drugs from Birmingham to Dublin, where Irish police picked up the trail. The international investigation found the rollers were sent back and forth between Holland, where they were filled with drugs, and Dublin, where they were unloaded.A second company, Birmingham-based JBS Transport, was also found to be linked to the drug smuggling operation.Investigators found a consignment of sea scooters and mini-motorbikes that repeatedly travelled between Holland and Dublin concealed cocaine.Edwards and his wife, both aged 50, were found guilty of drugs offences at Birmingham Crown Court today, a Soca spokesman said.Also found guilty were driver John Gilbert, 49, of Birmingham Road, Oldbury, JBS Transport manager Barry Phipps, 46, of Walmley, Sutton Coldfield, and driver David Cullen, 53, of Quinton, Birmingham. The gang will be sentenced at a later date.
Arrested during the search was 36-year-old Javier Martinez and his girlfriend, 35-year-old Valentina Lopez.Both were being held on suspicion of possession of cocaine for sale and possession of methamphetamine for sale.Besides cocaine, Angeja says task force members also found $15,000 worth of crystal methamphetamine, $3,400 worth of rock cocaine and about $100 worth of Ecstacy pills.
Read more...Frank Lee Grigsby, 36, waived a pre-sentencing report after pleading no contest to drug possession and immediately received the term with credit for 81 days. Other charges were dismissed. Authorities arrested Grigsby Sept. 23 after transportation security screeners said they found the drugs and lights in his baggage. Grigsby had just upgraded his seat to first class and boarded the Continental Airlines flight when authorities took him into custody, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
Grigsby allegedly told authorities he was transporting the seven individually wrapped bricks of marijuana back to Baton Rouge, La. personally because he was getting ripped off when having it mailed. He planned to both use it personally and sell it to friends in the rap industry.
Romell Wilburn, 33, is charged with one count of bringing contraband into a penal institution, a felony, according to Cook County State’s Attorney’s office spokesman Andy Conklin.Officials said whoever Romell Wilburn was providing the drugs to may have run out, which is possibly why he was bringing in more.
Cook County Sheriff's Office Wilburn, a five-year veteran of the jail, was arrested Monday after a search revealed he was carrying three packages of tobacco laced with marijuana, Conklin said.“He made arrangements between inmates and people on the outside to smuggle in tobacco laced with marijuana,” Conklin said, citing court records. Cook County Sheriff's Dept. spokesman Steve Patterson said Wilburn was assigned to Division 10, a maximum security portion of the jail that houses inmates with psychiatric issues. The department searched the division following Wilburn's arrest, but did not find any drugs. Patterson said whoever Wilburn was providing the drugs to may have run out, which is possibly why he was bringing in more Monday.
The department began investigating Wilburn when the internal investigations division received a tip he was bringing the drugs from his car to the jail while on duty, Patterson said. The department set up a surveillance camera and recorded Wilburn going out to his car after his shift began, getting marijuana-laced tobacco and bringing it back in. He was arrested when he re-entered the building, Patterson said. Sheriff's department investigators are working to determine who was paying him for the drugs.
Charged with possession with intent to distribute heroin – a felony offense – were:
• Larry G. Baldwin, 61
• Matthew E. Baldwin, 27, Larry’s son; and
• Paula Holland, 43
Also arrested during the traffic stop, but charged
Five Keyser residents were arrested Thursday afternoon and charged with dealing heroin following a week-long investigation by the Keyser City Police Department and the Mineral County Sheriff’s Office.
The investigation, which was triggered by a citizen tip, culminated early Thursday afternoon in a controlled buy in Keyser. Following that monitored transaction, Keyser Police conducted a traffic stop on St. Cloud Street involving the vehicle in which the alleged drug peddlers were riding. with misdemeanor possession only, was Jared N. Citarelli, 21, of Keyser.
Seized during the 2:15 p.m. traffic stop was a small amount of heroin as well as the vehicle itself, a Dodge Neon, because it was involved in the alleged drug transaction.
As a result of the traffic stop, law enforcement officers obtained a warrant to search a residence on Limestone Road near Mill Meadow Park. Charged with felony possession with intent to distribute following that operation were:
• Mark C. Brant, 38 and
• Joletta Rebovich, 42, both also of Keyser.
Seized during the raid on Limestone Road was drug paraphernalia, a small amount of U.S. currency and a Dodge van.
Following their arrest, the suspects were transported to the Potomac Highlands Regional Jail. Larry Baldwin complained of chest pains during his arrest, and was transported to Potomac Valley Hospital, where he was held overnight in a guarded room. He was transported to the regional jail Friday afternoon.
Police credited the citizen who provided the tip with providing information that allowed officers to make the drug arrests. “That started it all,” a Keyser Police spokesman said
Two foreigners were arrested in Sliema, on the north east coast of Malta, after one of them was found with cocaine capsules in his stomach, the local police reported.
The offender, 36, born in the Dominican Republic but with residence in Spain, was found with 80 capsules hidden in his stomach, containing approximately 800g of cocaine.The second detainee is a 35-year-old woman. They had arrived in Malta through a direct flight from Brussels and were sent to Mater Dei hospital where medical examinations took place.
Two foreigners were arrested in Sliema, on the north east coast of Malta, after one of them was found with cocaine capsules in his stomach, the local police reported.
The offender, 36, born in the Dominican Republic but with residence in Spain, was found with 80 capsules hidden in his stomach, containing approximately 800g of cocaine.The second detainee is a 35-year-old woman. They had arrived in Malta through a direct flight from Brussels and were sent to Mater Dei hospital where medical examinations took place.
Travis A. Capozzi, 18, of the Town of Tonawanda, and Angel Natal, 30, of Buffalo, were stopped by troopers assigned to the city as part of Operation Impact.An odor of marijuana came from the vehicle, and a subsequent search revealed the heroin under the driver's seat and the last bit of a marijuana cigarette in the glove box, state police said. A deck is a street term for the 1 to 15 grams of heroin in a bag, according to law enforcement sources.Both men, who were taken to the Erie County Holding Center, were charged with third- and fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, and unlawful possession of marijuana.
Read more...William Ernest Sigley Burns, 63, admitted conspiring to supply both heroin and cocaine while he was employed as the caretaker at St Mark’s Elm Tree Primary School in Bishopton Road West.Burns, who is no longer employed at the school, was arrested after drugs were seized from his home 10 yards from the school’s nursery building.
Burns, now of St Cuthbert’s Road, was granted bail and will return to court on December 18 for sentencing.His accomplice, Stephen Michael Sparrow, 23, also of St Cuthbert’s Road, has pleaded guilty to the same charges and is also awaiting sentence.During a previous hearing, the court heard police stopped a BMW on April 2 which is alleged to have been driven by Burns. Crack cocaine with a street value of £1,690 was seized along with heroin. Heroin and Class C drugs were found in his bungalow.
First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Ivica Dacic today stated that the police detained four persons in Belgrade on suspicion of drug smuggling.
Dacic specified that they are suspected of smuggling five kilograms of cocaine from Paraguay to Serbia, adding that group’s leader, Nebojsa Lukic from Belgrade, was also arrested. The operation was carried out in cooperation with German police and customs officers, adding that it is more proof of Serbia’s determination to clamp down on crime and corruption. The operation was carried out by the Serbian police, Counter-Organised Crime Directorate (SBPOK) and the intelligence unit, Dacic added.
Stephanie Thomas, 43, was said to have been a naive housewife flattered by the attentions of Matthew Wright, 38, who introduced her to crime and cocaine soon after they met in January last year. woman was sweet-talked by her boyfriend into smuggling cocaine from Venezuela wrapped up in her bikini bottoms.Seven months later the pair were caught with cocaine worth £80,000 after landing at Manchester Airport after a trip to South America.At the time Wright -- of Alfred Street, Wigan -- was on bail after being caught with £2,000 of forged bank notes after trying to pass one of them off at a Chorley hardware store. He later admitted that he had smuggled the cocaine in a bid to make 'easy money' and had roped Thomas -- of Cameron Place, Wigan -- who has children aged from four to 22, into his scheme.One of the blocks of cocaine was found inside a sock inside a trolley the pair had brought back. The other was found inside a beach bag, concealed by bikini bottoms.Wright paid for the flights out to Venezuela, where Thomas took a 'bad dose' of cocaine and became sick -- meaning the pair missed their original flight home. Later, a dealer's list of customers was found at her address in Wigan, the court heard.The couple had also travelled to Colombia -- famous for its cocaine trade -- before jetting out to Venezuela.Wright admitted his offence but Thomas was found guilty at trial. Sentencing the pair for importing class A drugs, Judge David Hernandez said Wright had taken Thomas with him to give himself a 'veneer of respectability,' while she had 'knowledge' of what he was up to. Wright was sentenced to a total of eight years and eight months for importing cocaine and possessing the forged notes, while Thomas was given four years and six months in jail.Mike O'Grady, of Revenue and Customs said: "There is no excuse for any person to get involved in this illegal and harmful trade. Today, Wright and Thomas are paying the price for their parts in an international criminal network."Working with our law enforcement colleagues both in the UK and abroad sharing intelligence we will take every action to detect, seize and bring those smuggling drugs into the country before the courts.
"This is an illegal trade which damages the lives of local people and finances wider criminal organizations."
ringleader, Brian McCulloch, 39, from Paisley, who was caught on tape boasting that he made £20,000 a day selling the drug, was jailed for 10 years. The court was told that he was caught when he bought a BMW jeep, which had a police listening device installed inside, from his co-accused Stephen Jamieson. Jamieson, 26, also from Paisley and who was jailed for eight years, used his profits to buy a £115,000 Lamborghini car, an £1,800 dog and three watches together costing £10,315. Steven Caddis, 30, and Gary Caddis were sentenced to six years and five years. The court was told that the men were overheard by police using codewords while discussing buying and selling cocaine, mentioning prices that ran into tens of thousands of pounds. Strathclyde Police searched 171 houses and questioned 146 people. Officers have so far seized drugs and drug-related material worth £8.8 million, £445,000 in cash, two Mac-10 machineguns and an assortment of sawn-off shotguns, rifles, handguns and ammunition. They also took three Range Rovers, one BMW X5, one BMW X3, one Lexus and one Porsche Cayenne, as well as five Rolex watches, two Cartier watches and one Breitling watch. At an earlier hearing all four men admitted dealing cocaine. Jamieson also pleaded guilty to money laundering. Judge Lord Pentland said the sentences reflected “society’s condemnation” of the activities of gangs such as McCulloch’s. He told him: “It is a trade which wreaks so much misery on its users and their families. It is clear that you were one of those particularly concerned with organising and running an extensive criminal scheme involving large amounts of cocaine. The quantities and values of the drugs involved were substantial.”
The judge commended the police for their “skill and diligence” in bringing the gang to justice.
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