United States Drug Enforcement Administration

NEW YORK – A court authorized search of an apartment in the Mount Hope neighborhood of the Bronx resulted in the seizure of approximately 110 kilograms of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine, plus 50 pounds of a substance believed to be crystal meth and up to 75,000 counterfeit pills believed to contain fentanyl. The drugs, which were allegedly intended for citywide distribution, carry an estimated street value of approximately $24 million. Julio Mota Plasencia was arrested in the stash apartment on Monday night and is charged with Operating as a Major Trafficker.

Bridget G. Brennan, New York City’s Special Narcotics Prosecutor, Frank A. Tarentino III, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) New York Division, Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark, New York City Police Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell, New York State Police Superintendent Kevin P. Bruen and Ricky J. Patel, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), New York, announced the seizure and arrest following the arraignment of Mota Plasencia in Manhattan Criminal Court last night, where he was ordered held without bail.

Plasencia was arrested on the evening of Monday, June 27, 2022, inside 112 Henwood Place, Apt. 3D in the Bronx. A criminal complaint filed by the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor contains charges of Operating as a Major Trafficker and Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the First and Third Degrees.

The investigation was conducted by the DEA’s New York Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Strike Force. This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/ocdetf.

The New York OCDETF Strike Force is housed at the DEA’s New York Division and includes agents and officers of the DEA; the New York City Police Department; the New York State Police; Homeland Security Investigations; the U. S. Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; the U.S. Marshals Service; New York National Guard; U.S. Coast Guard; Port Washington Police Department; and New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

Pursuant to an investigation, members of the New York OCDETF Strike Force obtained a court authorized warrant for 112 Henwood Place, Apt. 3D. Upon entering the apartment at about 6:55 p.m. on Monday, June 27, 2022, agents and officers allegedly observed Plasencia run to the rear of the apartment.  Agents and officers pursued and found him standing on a windowsill in the bedroom. An open duffle bag that allegedly contained approximately 20 kilograms of narcotics was nearby.

A thorough search of the apartment revealed drugs present throughout. Inside one closet near the entrance to the apartment, agents and officers found a gym bag with 50,000 to 75,000 counterfeit pills that were blue in color and stamped “M-30” mimicking a commonly abused form of oxycodone. The pills are believed to contain fentanyl.

A second closet held two duffle bags containing 30 to 40 kilograms of narcotics and three ziplock bags of heroin, two of which were labelled “Cartel” and “Goma.” Also, inside that closet were four boxes of rifle ammunition, with a total of 80 rounds that can also be used in certain handguns.

Inside the living room, agents and officers recovered a red cooler containing approximately 26 kilograms of cocaine, and a duffle bag containing cylindrical packages wrapped in plastic that are believed to have contained crystal meth. Also, in the living room was a cardboard box with miscellaneous car parts and a kilogram of cocaine.

A hamper in a hallway outside the bedroom contained approximately three kilograms of cocaine. On the kitchen counter were two kilograms of cocaine that had been opened up, as if being prepared for packaging.

Some kilogram packages were labeled with various names, such as Toyota and Audi, and an image of the Dockers logo. The drugs seized will be submitted for DEA laboratory analysis.

Drug paraphernalia was also recovered from various places in the apartment. A suitcase contained a kilo press used in packaging wholesale quantities of narcotics. A duffle bag contained plates for the kilo press. Other items recovered included scales, plastic gloves and other packaging materials. A drug ledger contained Plasencia’s name and multiple dollar amounts. Agents and officers seized evidence of multiple alias. Multiple forms of identification bore his picture and different names, including a driver’s license from the Dominican Republic.

Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan thanked Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark and Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, and commended her office’s Special Investigations Bureau, and the New York Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Strike Force, including the DEA; the New York City Police Department; the New York State Police; Homeland Security Investigations; the U. S. Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; the U.S. Marshals Service; New York National Guard; U.S. Coast Guard; Port Washington Police Department; and New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

“It appears that this apartment served as the Amazon warehouse for lethal drugs in New York City and surrounding regions,” said Special Prosecutor Brennan “While this case is consistent with the trend towards high-level traffickers selling many different drug types, it is highly unusual to find such large amounts concentrated in one location.” 

“Data doesn’t lie, New York is under siege by criminal drug networks flooding our city streets with fentanyl, killing people at record rates,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Frank Tarentino. “This significant seizure proves that today’s traffickers have all the ingredients to make toxic cocktails for retail sales, deliberately blinding the users of what they are really getting. Through great teamwork among the New York Strike Force and NYC Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor, we have taken $24 million worth of deadly drugs off our streets.”

“This seizure illustrates what we are up against in the Bronx with traffickers bringing vast amounts of poisonous drugs that devastate communities here and in the metropolitan area,” said Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark. “It is particularly disturbing that there was such a variety of dangerous drugs; fentanyl and crystal meth are especially destructive to people’s health. We will continue to work with local, state, and federal partners to target these traffickers and get these deadly drugs off our streets. I thank Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan and Frank A. Tarentino III, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA, for their partnership, as well as HSI, New York, NYPD and the New York State Police.”

“These illegal narcotics are poison. Period. They are peddled for profit by criminals who prey on some of the most vulnerable communities in New York City – and as this case demonstrates it is behavior that can never be tolerated,” said NYPD Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell. “The work of our NYPD investigators, together with the city’s Special Narcotics Prosecutor, the DEA, and all of our law enforcement partners has shut down a depraved drug-dealing operation in this case and I want to thank all of our investigators for their outstanding in doing so.”

“As New York City continues to see a record number of drug-related overdoses, with the majority of those related to fentanyl, a seizure of this magnitude will inevitably save countless lives.  Monday’s enforcement action serves as an example of what law enforcement can accomplish when pooling together personnel and resources towards the common goal of eradicating the illegal narcotics devastating our communities,” said HSI Acting Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel.  “HSI is committed to continuing to work hand-in-hand with our state, local and federal partners to put a stop to drug trafficking in our communities.”

“I am proud of the dedicated efforts of our members and law enforcement partners in this investigation which resulted in the arrest of Mota Plasencia,” said New York State Police Superintendent Bruen. “Drug trafficking has long been a catalyst for violence and other criminal activities that plague our communities.  This arrest sends a clear message that we will continue to be relentless in stopping the flow of these illegal substances throughout New York State.”

The charges and allegations are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.