
Thanks reportedly to New York’s widely panned bail reform measures, six drug dealers who were arrested Monday on allegations of trying to push $7 million worth of the deadly opioids fentanyl and heroin onto the streets of New York and New England are now free.
“Charges say that at 7:25 p.m. on Jan. 27, investigators executed a court-authorized search warrant of the [suspects’] apartment, where they allegedly found the six defendants in the middle of packaging powder-filled glassine envelopes stamped with the brand ‘Fire’ into bundles,” AM New York Metro initially reported following the dealers’ arrests.
“The search also allegedly uncovered hundreds of thousands of glassine envelopes, which covered two tabletops and overflowed from plastic bins and cardboard boxes on the floor and a bed, a glass table, desk lamps, a scale, grinders, empty glassine envelopes, small spoons, an ink bottle, ink pads and stamps.”
Local officials were stunned by what the authorities found.
$7 Million worth of “FIRE” branded Heroin/Fentanyl seized in Bronx packaging mill: Six individuals chargedhttps://t.co/Qe6dY5JLYQ
— NYC Special Narcotics Prosecutor (@snpnyc) January 28, 2020
“The sheer volume of heroin and fentanyl packages assembled in a small apartment just off the Major Deegan Expressway in the Bronx is shocking,” New York City Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan said in a statement.
“Even veteran narcotics investigators were surprised by the output of this packaging operation, which was run out of a nondescript apartment in the borough afflicted by the city’s highest rate of overdose death.”
The suspects — Livo Valdez, Jaslin Baldera, Frederick Baldera, Frandi Ledema, Diego Tejada and Pafraimy Antonio — were subsequently charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance and the criminal use of drug paraphernalia.
Yet upon being arraigned in the Manhattan Criminal Court early Wednesday morning, all six suspects were released allegedly as per the state’s bail reform measures.
“None of the defendants are eligible for bail,” Assistant District Attorney Michael Di Paolo said during their arrangement, according to the New York Post.
"6 suspected drug dealers who are accused of running a $7 million fentanyl distribution operation were released w/o bail under the new criminal justice law."
"Supporters in court Wednesday waved their hands in celebration as the 6 walked out."https://t.co/2zw8L2HAFc
— NYC PBA (@NYCPBA) January 29, 2020
But why would they not be eligible for bail? Likely because of disastrous state-wide measures that were signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo last year.
“Starting in January, judges across New York will have less discretion when a defendant first appears,” Spectrum News warned at the time.
“There’s no more cash bail for most misdemeanor and nonviolent felony arrests. The list includes criminally negligent homicide and unlawful imprisonment. If you’re accused of one of those crimes you’ll be issued an appearance ticket. The expectation is you’ll go back to court for your next court date instead of possibly sitting and waiting in jail.”
And apparently, pushing deadly drugs that kill tens of thousands of Americans yearly and ruin the lives of countless more doesn’t count. Nor do the litany of crimes listed below by the Oneida City Police Benevolent Association:
As of January 1st – the list of laws one WONT get held on bail for in New York!!
(Which basically means that the police…Posted by Oneida City Police Benevolent Association – PBA on Tuesday, October 1, 2019
The only restriction that the suspects face is that they were “ordered them to turn over their passports, as a number of them have connections to the Dominican Republic,” according to the Post. Other than that, they’re free as a bird.
These six aren’t the first — nor will they likely be the last — to benefit from the state’s bail reform measures.
Last month, days before the bail reform measures even formally went into effect, officials in one New York town released an illegal alien suspect whose actions had led to the death of a mother of three.
And as of this week, a suspected two-time bank robber is not only free but now on the run as well thanks again to the state’s bail reform measures.
“He’s out there, somewhere, able to commit another crime,” Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder reportedly said of the suspected bank robber.
“It’s insane when you think who we’re letting out of jail. It has nothing to do with justice reform. We’re not protecting the victims, and we’ve swung the pendulum way too far.”
While criticism against the measures has been pouring in for months now, the latest results have only compounded the public’s anger.
Look:
Make no mistake, what @TheDemocrats are doing to NY they will unleash everywhere if given the chance. #RememberInNovember #JustSayNo https://t.co/39mUGDzx6F
— Tammy Bruce (@HeyTammyBruce) January 30, 2020
3000+ people died in the attacks on 9/11. Almost 30,000 died from Fentanyl last year. We bombed Iraq into the Stone Age, and invaded Afghanistan after 9/11. But NYC just let a Fentanyl distributor with 7 million $ worth of product walk out of the courtroom with no bail. ?? ???
— ??Eric Carmen?? (@RealEricCarmen) January 30, 2020
$7 million ring busted…
great job U.S. DEA?Released without bail…
bad job @NYGovCuomo? https://t.co/MYQtWtxPNg— Nicole Malliotakis (@NMalliotakis) January 29, 2020
This is appalling. Fentanyl kills hundreds on New Yorkers and destroys countless families. This is who the governor has prioritized. #nybailreformfails https://t.co/PEjlXXa8dC
— Joe Borelli (@JoeBorelliNYC) January 29, 2020
Reminder: When you support #BailReform, you support this too. You don’t get to just pick out the outcomes you like.
Suspects accused of running $7M fentanyl ring released without bail https://t.co/6NkAs6uowo (via @nypmetro)
— Cameron Gray (@Cameron_Gray) January 29, 2020
@NYCSpeakerCoJo @NYGovCuomo @NYCMayor @JumaaneWilliams you should all be ashamed of yourselves ! This city is turning to ?- just watch how many will start leaving. Incompetent fools!!! Change bail reform law NOW
— Deede ♌️?⚾️ (@DeedeG23) January 29, 2020
NO BAIL???
My cousin was killed by fentanyl-laced heroin last week.
How many people died from the poison that these men were making?
What happened to all the politician’s talk about ending the opioid crisis????? Just BS.— JGlanton (@glanton_j) January 29, 2020
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has been working hard, and making progress, in the fight against the opioid epidemic:
For the first time in three decades, the number of fatal drug overdoses has dropped.
Fantastic news from @KellyannePolls on the @realDonaldTrump administration's progress in fighting the opioid epidemic. pic.twitter.com/bZYKCskyIJ
— Michael Ahrens (@michaelahrens) January 30, 2020
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