New Jersey authorities announced Thursday that two men were charged this week in what officials said was the largest narcotics seizure in the history of Atlantic County.
According to a report published by nj.com, Monday, prosecutor’s office detectives, DEA agents and other officers executed a search warrant at the Egg Harbor Township home of Ricardo Clavijo, 39. When they arrived they found Clavijo at the front door and Christopher Gonzalez, 37, of Pleasantville, in the basement, police said.
Clavijo and Gonzalez were charged with various drug and weapons-related charges, appeared via videoconference before a judge, and were detained without bail, officials said.
Another major distribution ring of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine in #atlanticcounty disrupted by @DEANEWJERSEYDiv and @ACProsecutor investigators. Well-done! https://t.co/XHQg9VsAvM
— Liberty Mid-Atlantic HIDTA (@lmahidta) July 16, 2021
In the home basement, officers allegedly discovered during the seizure operation, five kilogram-sized packages of suspected fentanyl, eight kilogram-sized packages of suspected fentanyl or cocaine, two kilogram-sized packages of suspected heroin and tens of thousands of pre-packaged individual doses of suspected heroin, authorities said.
They also seized a .45 caliber handgun, a loaded magazine for the handgun, a 9mm 50-round drum magazine, more narcotics packaging material, paraphernalia and an electronic money counter.
Largest single seizure
Prosecutor Damon G. Tyner underlined the dimension of the seizure. “By all accounts, this case represents the largest single seizure of drugs in the history of Atlantic County,” he said in a statement. “I cannot emphasize enough that this case could not have been accomplished without the collaborative work of the Liberty Mid-Atlantic High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area.”
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Tyner expressed the county’s determination to confront criminal actions related to drug trafficking.
“In Atlantic County we are committed to our fight to lower our overdoses and drug related deaths through a combination of enforcement actions and treatment programs. An investigation with a seizure of this caliber is going to save a lot of lives.”