Authorities Seize $30M Worth Of Heroin In The Bronx, Yonkers
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Authorities have seized $30 million worth of heroin in a drug bust in the Bronx and Yonkers.
Investigators on Monday said they also arrested Ramon Rivas and Jose Rodriguez in connection with the drug bust on Saturday. It was part of an ongoing investigation between federal, state and local authorities into heroin distribution.
Authorities Seize $30M Worth Of Heroin In The Bronx, Yonkers
The two men were stopped by authorities while they were parked in a Jeep on Sedgwick Avenue in the Bronx. That's when authorities said they found 22 bricks of powdered heroin in a concealed compartment of the trunk of the suspects' car.
A search of Rivas' home produced another 44 pounds of heroin and $50,000 cash hidden in the walls and floor, police said.
They later searched a Yonkers storage unit belonging to Rodriguez and found another nine pounds of heroin, authorities said.
"This massive load of heroin was destined for NYC streets and is a reminder that heroin trafficking organizations are targeting NYC for retail distribution and transshipments throughout the Eastern Seaboard," James J. Hunt, acting special agent in charge of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's New York Division, said in a statement.
"This seizure prevented a staggering amount of heroin from flooding our neighborhoods with this highly addictive narcotic," Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said in a statement. "I commend our NYPD investigators and law enforcement partners for their ongoing efforts to stop the distribution of this deadly drug."
Rivas and Rodriguez face criminal possession of a controlled substance. They have pleaded not guilty.
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