Schneiderman: “The Prime Minister is being recalled”

The “Prime Minister” had his own logo and quality control expert.

Brian Bacon isn’t a head of state, but an alleged heroin kingpin whose minions moved a kilogram of the drug a month from New York City, up the Hudson Valley, across Long Island and down to Pittsburgh using the Metro-North Railroad and Greyhound buses.

“So we have these men on public transportation sitting next to families, to tourists, carrying huge quantities of deadly drugs and dirty money, but they clearly thought no one was the wiser, but our investigators were watching and listening,” said New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who announced the arrest of Bacon, 52, from the Bronx on Thursday afternoon.

An Orange County court unsealed a 179-count indictment last night that lead to Bacon’s arrest, as well as his son, Tamar Dillard, 37, who goes by “Young Buck” and helped his father with distribution.

Dubbed Operation Iron Horse, a total of 13 people are involved with the ring, and 10 had been picked up as of early Thursday afternoon. Schneiderman said the supplier who brought the heroin to New York City has not been identified, but the investigation is ongoing.

Bacon’s alleged ring would cut the heroin in the city, possibly with dangerous chemicals, and stamp them with his “open” and “fly” logos, Schneiderman said. Bacon’s “quality control officer,” Wallace Walker, from the Bronx, would test the heroin and advise on how much it could be sold for on the streets.

Dillard would take the heroin upstate to Newburgh using the Harlem-125th Street station. Another man who was arrested, Jerome Turnbough, 55, would travel from Newburgh back to New York City with drugs, according to the attorney general’s office.

The distributors who took the heroin in carry-on bags were “nonchalant,” according to Schneiderman, and were not believed to be carrying guns.

The state attorney general’s office began investigating Bacon’s alleged ring last June with the New York State Police, are relied on wiretapped phones and traps to bust the dealers. Schneiderman said none of the people arrested were heroin users.

“The tragic reality is that heroin abuse is a problem not just confined to inner cities or any particular type of community, or even any class. It’s not just a problem for people who are down on their luck, but for middle and upper class people as well, and is a problem families are dealing with in every part of the state,” Schneiderman said.

Bacon had not been arraigned Thursday afternoon, and Schneiderman said Bacon’s arrest history wasn’t immediately available.

The attorney general said New York is perhaps the largest hub for heroin entering the U.S. City health department numbers show heroin overdose deaths doubled from 2010-2013, with the highest deaths in the Bronx and Staten Island, respectively.

An MTA spokeswoman said the organization is referring all requests for comment to the AG’s office.