puerto rico drug bust 2021puerto rico drug bust 2021

If convicted, each defendant faces sentences from 10 years to life in prison for the drug trafficking charges and up to 15 years for the DTVIA-related charges. Our strong partnerships, as in the case of the British Virgin Islands and island nations throughout our area of responsibility, are key to achieving safe and secure maritime borders from drug trafficking and other smuggling threats in the Eastern Caribbean. Learn more. Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. The Coast Guard arrested three people from the vessel and confiscated the semi-submersible boat. Many maritime smugglers depart Venezuela with the goal of getting products to the southern coast of Puerto Rico. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. Cocaine kilograms concealed in lunchbox in mail. CBP Air and Marine Operations agents assisted in the interdiction and seizure of nearly three tons of cocaine from a semi-submersible vessel near Puerto Rico. Concealing narcotic drugs in childrens lunchboxes was the modus operandi for this organization. More than 30 people were arrested in Hampton Roads in a massive drug bust. Superintendent Kevin P. Bruen said, This investigation speaks to the strong partnerships we have with our state, local and federal agencies, and to our commitment to keep dangerous drugs off our streets. Follow him on Twitter@BobPriceBBTXandFacebook. Twenty of the accused have been processes and booked. A search of the vessel led to the discovery of 5,515 pounds of cocaine. Members of NYDETF observed the package being delivered to the Colden Avenue address on January 22, 2021. Puerto Rico, and United States - specifically Rhode Island and Massachusetts. dvelopper et amliorer nos produits et services. In all, Baart wrote that the ring involved at least five houses. The seized cocaine has an estimated wholesale value of approximately $51 million dollars. She thanked Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr., Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark and Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - Angel Ayala-Vazquez, aka Angelo Millones, and his brother Luis X. Cruz-Vazquez, aka El Mono, were found guilty Tuesday of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin, crack, cocaine, marijuana, Percocet, and Xanax, following a joint investigation by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Since June, 15 people with connections to the ring have been arrested and federally charged, Southwick said. Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan commended the work of her offices Special Investigations Bureau, the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, the DEA, the U.S. The duo were beaten with an exercise weight, a piece of wood and a deep fryer, authorities said. August 17, 2022, 2:04 PM. A major drug pipeline from Puerto Rico to Syracuse has been dismantled as a result of this homegrown investigation, said DEA Special Agent in Charge Ray Donovan. There is no evidence of oil impacting the waterway. Federal border agents flying over Puerto Rico led law enforcement to $8.4 million worth of cocaine in a boat that had capsized and been abandoned in the water off the eastern coast of the island after a failed drug trafficking attempt. The acronym for the Puerto Rico PDMP is PR PDMP. Low-cost flights to Puerto Rico have enticed many travelers to choose the island as a vacation spot during the pandemic. A court-authorized search yielded approximately $1,000 from the trunk of the vehicle, as well as two cellphones. Cops snagged 25 pounds of cocaine and $350,000 in a Bronx drug bust they say disrupted a large-scale narcotics distribution network with possible ties to Puerto Rico. On June 21, 2021, he allegedly sent a USPS box listing his own name as both the recipient and sender. 3 Indicted for Part in Largest Seizure of NY-Destined Cocaine in Decades: Feds "This seizure signifies a shift in the illegal drug landscape in New York with cocaine seizures rising more than 150% . . Editors note: This article initially misstated the weight of the drug shipment as 1.25 tons. Coddington also possessed a small quantity of fentanyl on his person. The long-term investigation was conducted by DEAs New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, Group T-41, and USPIS. This summer, Coast Guard Academy Cadets completed a transatlantic voyage and experienced port calls in Azores, Iceland, and Bermuda. Reports on the New York federal courts. Members of NYDETF and USPIS observed Coddington enter a vehicle and move around in the back seat. Other arrests involving the ring include: Got a tip, comment or story idea? Frequent travel in connection with this work allegedly served as a cover for narcotics-related activity. . Drug-Smuggling Submarine Seized as Puerto Rico Busts Accelerate U.S. DOJ in Puerto Rico said $75 million in cocaine was found Puerto Rico cocaine seizures outpacing previous two years. Learn more via @CBPCaribbean: https://t.co/s86Jqt3FWT pic.twitter.com/5rDg7Q583V. At approximately 4:40 p.m., agents and officers observed Centeno-Rosado exit the location carrying a heavy duffel bag and get into a livery car. The Coast Guard Cutter Richard Etheridge crew offloaded approximately 1,700 kilograms of seized cocaine at Coast Guard Base San Juan, following the disruption go-fast vessel smuggling attempt by Coast Guard and British Virgin Islands authorities. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 HoustonsWhats Your Point? 17A in the Bronx yielded another $32,000 cash, various records and a Rolex watch. Duartes fingerprints were allegedly found on two packages and Garcias on four, and Centeno-Rosados on one of the packages associated with Garcia. Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. Puerto Rico has become a hotbed for drug traffickers attempting to smuggle cocaine and heroin from Colombia in South America to the East Coast of the U.S. Border officials in Puerto Rico. The charges and allegations are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The specific address was not included in the complaint. Bloomberg Business of Sports lets you follow the money in the world of sports, reporting on trades, salaries, endorsements, contracts and collective bargaining. . Cellphone communications between Duarte and Centeno-Rosado indicate Duarte ordered the livery car. But Loats badly burned body was found by authorities on Sunday in the town of Vega Baja. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the worlds largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. 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Sweeney allegedly exited the residence with a gray shopping bag, discarded what appeared to be a white USPS box, and gave the bag to Coddington. 26 Puerto Rico is also temporarily increasing (through September 30, 2021) physician payments to a minimum of 70 percent of Medicare rates, which is more in line with the national average for state Medicaid programs. The lunchboxes bore images of popular cartoon characters. I applaud the proactive work conducted by the NYC Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor, the US Postal Inspection Service, and the members of the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, Group T-41.. The search yielded more than 18 pink zip lock bags containing cocaine, as well as $4,000 cash, a Rolex watch, luxury sneakers, a luxury book bag and wallet, a kilo press (equipment used in packaging narcotics), three digital scales and cellphones. Cape May bust breaks up cocaine network with links to Puerto Rico drug traffickers. Si vous ne souhaitez pas que nos partenaires et nousmmes utilisions des cookies et vos donnes personnelles pour ces motifs supplmentaires, cliquez sur Refuser tout. Enhanced enforcement efforts along the Central America/Mexico corridor and on the U.S. Southwest border as well as the ongoing violence between rival TCOs [transnational criminal organizations] in Mexico may be contributing to the shift to more efficient, presumably less troublesome Caribbean routes," according to the 2015 White House Caribbean Border Counternarcotics Strategy report. Instagram A 24-year-old tourist from Delaware was killed in Puerto Rico. SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - On March 29, 2021, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned a six-count indictment charging 25 gang members with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, and aiding and abetting in the possession/distribution of controlled substances, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United The following day, on April 29, 2021, members of NYDETF and USPIS tracked a package destined for 1871 Barnes Avenue in the Bronx. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. An attorney for Agramonte-Minaya declined to comment. Often, the named recipients were either fictitious or were actual individuals not associated with the address. The Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Training and Technical Assistance Center (PDMP TTAC) reports 2020 data and 2021 features of the Puerto Rico Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP). Damian Williams, the new U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York sworn in last month, referred to the amount of cocaine seized as a "massive quantity of dangerous drugs.". Jeffrey Quinones, public affairs officer for CBPs Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands outposts, told the Washington Examiner that the eastern Caribbean has served as a trafficking pit stop for decades, but the recent uptick indicates cartels are using the 100-mile-wide island to circumnavigate the Mexican border. There, detectives found four guns in a safe, Baart wrote: a Taurus PT 809 9mm handgun, a Ruger revolver, a Highpoint .40-caliber and a Glock handle handgun with no top slide. Tirado, Fuentes, Angel Negron-Collazo and Rahfet Shehadeh were all arrested and charged with conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine and heroin, the complaint said. CBP's Air and Marine Operations unit was on routine patrol around 8 a.m. Thursday when the shots were fired about 12 miles (19 kilometers) off the coast from Cabo Rojo, a major drug smuggling. Fuentes was also charged with possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, DEA task force officer Kelly Baart wrote in the complaint. When Fuentes was arrested, he tried to throw away a .40-caliber Glock that police later found, according to Baart. The last tourist death in Puerto Rico occurred in February 2020 when a 39-year-old man from Denver was thrown from an SUV and run over in San Juan, police have said. They are scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment on November 17, 2021. April 28, 2021 12:55am Updated Local authorities said Tariq Quadir Loat of Delaware was killed on April 24, 2021. Domestic Cannabis Suppression / Eradication Program, Red Ribbon Toolkit - Resources For Your Community, DEA National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, Intelligence Research Specialist Job Announcements, Schedule A Hiring Authority: Intelligence Research Specialist, Privacy Impact Assessment and Management Information Systems, Victim Witness Assistance Program Resources. The U.S. Department of Justice in Puerto Rico said Monday that authorities had made a record-breaking cocaine bust after officials seized a submarine in Caribbean waters. Postal Inspection Service, the NYPD, the New York State Police, and the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York. He had approximately $12,000 on his person. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023).

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puerto rico drug bust 2021

puerto rico drug bust 2021