Upper West Side residents were shocked Monday night to learn that a multimillion-dollar drug operation was uncovered in their building.
Just last Friday, tenants of 448 Central Park West noticed police activity around their apartments but didn’t yet know the cause, CBS2 reported. On Monday, they found out that a 20-pound stash of heroin and fentanyl had been discovered in a drug ring involving unit 6D.
Those arrested included tenant Jesus Perez Cabral along with his accused accomplices, Johnny Beltrez, David Rodriguez and Richard Rodriguez. The group allegedly mixed the drugs, placing them into bags marked with the “Uber” brand name, Newsweek reported. In an odd twist of events, it turned out that Richard Rodriguez was an Uber driver himself.
In a statement on Monday, DEA Special Agent in Charge James J. Hunt underscored the seriousness of the city’s fight against drugs. “Fentanyl is the deadliest street drug to ever hit this country,” he remarked. “This seizure alone contains enough potency to kill half of the population of New York City, if laboratory analysis proves it is all fentanyl.”
Each of the arrested men was arraigned last weekend and it is unknown whether charges will be pressed against any additional individuals.
