“Massive” Cocaine And Fentanyl Stash Discovered In Bronx As Marshals Pursued Fugitive

A “massive” load of drugs and cash was found in the Bronx last week during a hunt for a fugitive.

New Jersey fraud suspect Aracely Ortiz was being pursued by the US Marshals NY / NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force, who stumbled onto a “huge drug operation” while entering a 6th floor apartment, according to the New York Post. 

The office of Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan announced that they found “a glass-topped table holding numerous glassine envelopes filled with fentanyl” and paraphernalia used for packing drugs.

They also announced that a safe in one bedroom had three bricks of fentanyl and two of cocaine.

Officials discovered six packages of cocaine, three jars of fentanyl, and 10 unidentified packages in a second bedroom. They also found around $100,000 in cash and a money counter, the Post report said. 

Field tests confirmed the presence of fentanyl and cocaine, but further analysis by the DEA is pending. During the raid, Ortiz was in the bedroom and 36 year old Jonathan Corona was exiting. Both were arrested and charged with multiple counts of possessing a controlled substance.

U.S. Marshal Ralph Sozio told the New York Post: “This was another successful takedown of a fugitive, which led to an incidental discovery of serious drug-related activities.”

“I want to commend the NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force, NYPD, and NYS Police for their tireless pursuit in apprehending our city’s fugitives, and in this case the seizure of fentanyl by the NYDETF, the leading cause of overdose deaths, off our city streets,” he concluded.