Photo Courtesy of NYPD
Cocaine, weapons, and more than $80,000 was seized during early morning raids.
By Forum Staff
Nine alleged members of the 97 Street Trinitarios and the #Hot97Boyz street gangs are facing multiple counts of drug and weapons charges as a result of a long time undercover operation.
The investigation included successful buys of firearms and illicit drugs, including cocaine and heroin laced with Fentanyl, from the defendants between August 2016 and May 2018.
District Attorney Brown said, “A morning wake-up call by the police armed with court authorized search warrants early yesterday morning resulted in the arrest of 18 individuals and the seizure of narcotics and drug paraphernalia, including marijuana, cocaine, crack cocaine, heroin, scales, packaging and over $80,000 in cash. Police also confiscated a machete and five vehicles. These arrests should serve as a warning to drug dealers and gang members who operate in New York City that law enforcement is coming for you. We will continue to aggressively track down those who flood our community with illegal drugs and guns and put them behind bars.”
The main defendants in the case have been identified as Oscar “Diddy” Urena, 35, of Jackson Heights; Jesus “Junior” Mota, 34, of College Point; and Dionis “Moz” Fernandez, 23, of Whitestone.
Additionally, Joseph “Jay” Payamps, 23, of Corona, was arrested following a court authorized search of his residence yesterday where police allegedly seized $62,337 in cash and 240 grams of cocaine along with scales, packaging and kilo presses.
These defendants and 14 others were arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on various complaints charging them with criminal possession of controlled substances, criminal possession of a weapon and other alleged crimes.
The investigation that led to the arrests was a joint undertaking between the NYPD’s Queens Gang Unit and District Attorney Brown’s Narcotics Investigations Bureau. The sting utilized undercover NYPD detectives who allegedly made more than 35 successful narcotics purchases, as well as three gun buys, between August 2016 and May 2018. Investigators recovered two loaded 9mm firearms, a loaded .22 caliber handgun, a stun gun, cocaine, thousands of Tramadol pills, marijuana, heroin laced with Fentanyl and eight vehicles.
The alleged gang members operated primarily in the neighborhoods of Corona, Elmhurst and Jackson Heights.
Utilizing court authorized wiretaps, investigators were able to eavesdrop on telephone conversations between several of the defendants and make arrests based on information garnered from those conversations.
The criminal complaints also detail several dozen instances where undercover investigators were able to successfully purchase illegal drugs from the defendants, as well as guns.
On April 28, 2017, it is alleged that an undercover detective met with defendant Urena and paid $940 for a black Jimenez Arms 9mm semi-automatic firearm along with 11 rounds of ammunition. The defendant is also alleged to have provided the “buyer” with a bag of marijuana.
If convicted, Urena and Fernandez each face up to 20 years in prison with the other defendants all facing sentences between 4 and 14 years.
