A map provided by the United States Attorney shows the far reaching extent of Operation Cross County—from Queens to Suffolk Counties. Law enforcement officials are confident that the distribution of heroin will be greatly reduced in the wake of the bust that came as a result of an intensive nine-month investigation.
Authorities busted a multimillion-dollar heroin ring this week, making 20 arrests and seizing more than $30,000 worth of heroin and thousands of dollars in cash.
The nine-month joint investigation, dubbed Operation County Connection, was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Nassau County Police Department (NCPD), with assistance from the Suffolk County Police Department, NYPD and the U.S. Marshals Service, Eastern District of New York.
The operation ended when FBI agents converged on a Woodhaven residence at 87-31 78th Street that is believed to be the headquarters of the Perez Organization Tuesday morning around 6:30 a.m. According to the charges, 26-year-old Jose Perez has been running the organization, which officials say sold almost $3 million dollars of heroin over the last nine months. Feds say Perez was importing the heroin from Mexico and the Dominican Republic, and running the goods through the Woodhaven location.
The investigation included hundreds of hours of court-ordered wiretaps documenting numerous purchases and sales of heroin by the defendants. Over the course of the operation, more than 5,400 individual doses of heroin were recovered from members of the Perez organization. Authorities maintain these doses were en route to streets in local communities.
“The charges and arrests announced today have ended the activities of an alleged heroin distribution organization whose members were drawn from a variety of backgrounds but were united by common cause – profiting personally while seriously endangering the lives of so many residents in our communities,” stated United States Attorney Loretta Lynch. She went on to pledge the commitment of her office to rid the streets of heroin and other controlled substances.
“We will not end this pursuit until our mission is accomplished.”
Tuesday’s sting operation was the culmination of an extensive investigation initiated by the alarming spike of heroin use in Long Island. FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Janice K. Fedarcyk offered explanation for the problem, “heroin use among suburban teens is alarmingly popular, and today’s heroin is more potent and less expensive than ever. A potentially lethal dose can be purchased for about the cost of a pack of cigarettes or a six-pack of beer.”
The defendants include Roland Stern, a retired Suffolk County Marine Bureau Police Officer; his daughter Corey Stern; Kathryn Pappas, a college student; Dana Sollecito, allegedly dealing from the parking lot of her family’s restaurant, Corner Gallery, in Massapequa; Tina and Matthew Catrini, a married couple from Farmingville; and the spouse of an NYPD officer.
If convicted of the heroin distribution conspiracy charge, each of the defendants faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum sentence of life.
Compiled by the staff of The Forum
