NYPD Seizes 580 Pounds of Cocaine in Queens, Its Biggest Bust in More Than a Decade

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Crime Watch Global thanks the readers who sent us this tip. We passed the information through to the appropriate authorities, and verification of the operation confirms that it led to this major NYPD-led seizure.

Federal and city investigators seized about 580 pounds—approximately 266 kilograms—of cocaine from a self-storage facility in Long Island City, Queens, on a Wednesday. The NYPD identified the operation as its largest cocaine seizure in at least a decade.

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a Friday news conference: “Think about the scale of what was intercepted here. More than a quarter of a metric ton of cocaine sitting in boxes and ready to move through an illegal distribution network.” The exact calendar dates of the seizure and news conference were not supplied.

The cocaine has an estimated street value of $10 million. Prosecutors said it would likely have been cut with fentanyl before reaching buyers in New York City. Lisa Tompkins, chief assistant district attorney at the New York Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor, said cocaine is often mixed with dangerous substances such as fentanyl.

Prosecutors also said cocaine now factors into more than half of all overdose deaths in New York City. That public-health statement is attributed to the prosecutors briefing the case.

Prosecutors charged Nelson Salcedo, 35, of Englewood, New Jersey, with first- and third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. He pleaded not guilty in Manhattan Criminal Court on Wednesday evening and is being held at Rikers Island on $50,000 cash bail or a $100,000 bond.

Commissioner Tisch said Salcedo was seen unloading numerous boxes full of drugs. His attorney, Patrick Brackley, questions that account. The charges remain allegations, and Salcedo is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

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United StatesNew YorkQueensLong Island CityNYPDCocaineFentanylDrug SeizureVerified Tip Follow-Up

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