WEST NEW YORK — West New York held a press conference Monday morning on the pre-dawn raid Sunday that turned out to be the largest drug seizure in the town, as well as one of the biggest heroin busts ever in the county.
Following up on an anonymous tip from a resident, the West New York Police Narcotics Unit entered a two-family house on Washington Street to find eight pounds of heroin – or $1 million in street value – as well as a sophisticated marijuana growing operation, a drug packaging facility, and $1,200 in cash.
“$1 million worth of heroin was cut, packaged, and ready to hit the streets,” town spokesperson Paul Swibinski said.
Five men, one from West New York, were charged with multiple felony charges related to manufacturing and distributing illegal drugs, and are being held at the Hudson County Correctional facility in Kearny with a bail set at $250,000 each.
Those charged were: West New York resident Alejandro Valdez, 34, of West New York; Christian Colon, 23, Victor Arias, 29, and Jose Delorbe, 25, all of the Bronx; and Jorge Guerra, 31, of Manhattan.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been contacted, and the investigation is continuing, Swibinski said.
The West New York Police Department urges residents with knowledge of potential crimes to continue to use the town’s highly publicized tip line at (201) 295-5047.
“This is another example of our police working closely with the community to increase public safety in West New York,” said Mayor Vega at the press conference. “I cannot overemphasize how proud we are of Director Al Bringa, our very fine Police Department and the citizens who provide vital information to help the police protect us all.”
Our Digital Archive from 2000 – 2016
