EAST ORANGE — East Orange police arrested 50 people on drugs and weapons charges after a nearly three-month investigation, officials said today. The suspects range in age from 16 to 52 and hailed primarily from East Orange, Acting Police Chief William Robinson said. A handful live in Newark, Montclair and Plainfield, and two reside in Connecticut and Virginia, he said....
EAST ORANGE — East Orange police arrested 50 people on drugs and weapons charges after a nearly three-month investigation, officials said today.
The suspects range in age from 16 to 52 and hailed primarily from East Orange, Acting Police Chief William Robinson said.
A handful live in Newark, Montclair and Plainfield, and two reside in Connecticut and Virginia, he said.
The majority of the suspects are accused of distributing drugs to undercover officers and possessing drugs with intent to distribute, he said.
Led by Lt. Thomas Koundry, Operation "Spring Cleaning" began in February to eliminate the ability "...of violent street gangs and/or criminal organizations’ to fund their illegal activities through the distribution of illicit narcotics," Robinson said.
Police confiscated $12,500 worth of crack cocaine, $2,500 in marijuana and small amounts of heroin and Oxycodone, East Orange police spokesman Sgt. Andrew DiElmo said. Three vehicles, stolen credit cards, a handgun and nearly $12,000 in cash were also seized, he said.
Two people were arrested as they sold crack cocaine to undercover officers outside of the city’s municipal building, DiElmo said.
Additionally, five people were arrested in four different convenience stores for offenses related to the illegal sale of tobacco, he said.
Some of the people charged have as many as 21 prior arrests. One person has 16 felony convictions. Over half have gang affiliation, said DiElmo. The majority of the suspects are in their mid-to late-twenties, he said.