The apartment served as an “Amazon warehouse” for lethal drugs in the city
More than 250 pounds of various drugs worth roughly $24 million were seized in a major Bronx bust as a top Drug Enforcement Administration federal agent warned New York is “under siege” with a flood of deadly drugs.
About 110 kilograms of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine, in addition to 50 pounds of crystal meth and up to another 75,000 counterfeit pills believed to contain fentanyl were confiscated from a stash apartment in the Mount Hope neighborhood, authorities said.
“Data doesn’t lie, New York is under siege by criminal drug networks flooding our city streets with fentanyl, killing people at record rates,” said DEA Special Agent-in-Charge Frank Tarentino.
“This significant seizure proves that today’s traffickers have all the ingredients to make toxic cocktails for retail sales, deliberately blinding the users of what they are really getting.”
In statements, NYC’s Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan said the apartment served as an “Amazon warehouse” for lethal drugs in the city while Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark and NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell both referred to the drugs as poison.
“This seizure illustrates what we are up against in the Bronx with traffickers bringing vast amounts of poisonous drugs that devastate communities here and in the metropolitan area,” Clark said.
Once authorities from a DEA task force that involves local, state and federal officers entered the home Monday evening, they arrested Mota Plasencia after he fled to the back of the unit. Officers found him with about 20 kilos of narcotics nearby, authorities said.
Plasencia, 39, was charged with operating as a major trafficker and two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance as bags of drugs were found throughout the apartment.
One bag near the front of the apartment had 50,000 to 75,000 counterfeit blue pills stamped M-30 which mimics a commonly abused form of oxycodone.
Another closet had two duffle bags with 30 to 40 kilos of drugs and three ziplock bags of heroin, two of which were labeled “Cartel” and “Goma.”
The living room had a red cooler with 26 kilos of cocaine stored and another duffle bag containing what agents believe is crystal meth.
A cardboard box with car parts and a kilo of cocaine was recovered from the living room and a hamper in the hallway outside the bedroom contained about three kilos of cocaine, authorities alleged.
The kitchen counter had two kilos of cocaine that appeared ready for packaging, according to law enforcement.
Drug paraphernalia, 80 rounds of rifle ammunition and evidence of multiple aliases were found, police said.
Tags: Arrests Cocaine Counterfeit Oxy Drug Trafficking DTO Fentanyl Heroin M30 Meth Opioid Crisis
