Multi-state fentanyl investigation results in 5 arrests, officials announce
5 arrested after extensive fentanyl investigation
Five people have been arrested in connection with an extensive fentanyl trafficking operation.
CENTER CITY - An extensive fentanyl investigation, begun in 2023, stretching across Pennsylvania, with raids happening in Northeast Philadelphia and another taking place on a Greyhound bus traveling from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, resulted in almost 32 kilos off the streets.
Philadelphia District Attorney announced the arrest of five people in connection with the investigation.
What we know:
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner and law enforcement partners announce during a press conference Wednesday of a huge drug investigation that took nearly 32 kilos off the streets of Philadelphia, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and New Jersey.
The investigation began in 2023, and ended this week with authorities arresting five high-level dealers in the drug trade, in an organization called the Acevedo DTO.
The arrests included 53-year-old Enrique Munoz Hernandez, 54-year-old Victor Formin Bueno, 35-year-old Yesenia Paulino, 25-year-old Jose Rondon, and 51-year-old Manuel Santos.
Charges:
They are all being charged with: Possession with Intent to Deliver, Conspiracy, Corrupt Organization, Dealing in Illegal Proceeds, Criminal Use of Communication Facility and Paraphernalia.
Each defendant is currently being held on $2 million bail.
The backstory:
Investigators uncovered extensive fentanyl distribution activity in Philadelphia and in the wider tri-state area, including New Jersey and parts of Pennsylvania. Authorities believe at least six overdoses, three of which were fatal, were linked to product produced by the Acevedo DTO recently.
After executing search warrants at table houses located at locations in North and Northeast Philadelphia, law enforcement recovered a total of 31 kilograms of fentanyl with an estimated street value of over $5 million, worth over approximately 500,000 individual doses.
Additionally, the Dangerous Drug Offenders Unit (DDOU) partnered with the DEA's Pittsburgh office in December 2024 to recover a suitcase containing 44,000 bags of fentanyl weighing approximately 10 kilograms that was being transported on a Greyhound bus from Philadelphia to Allegheny County.
What they're saying:
"I applaud the extensive and thorough investigation, conducted by the DAO's Dangerous Drug Offenders Unit, the Philadelphia Police Department, and federal authorities, that led to this fentanyl trafficking ring bust. My office intends to prosecute these individuals with appropriate severity for their illegal activity, which has poisoned our communities and ruined an untold number of lives. We will continue to work with our law enforcement and community partners to increase enforcement and prevention, because these tools are crucial in addressing the opioid epidemic," says DA Krasner.
FOX 29 News reached out to Judge Pat Dugan, who is challenging DA Krasner in this year’s election for District Attorney of Philadelphia and he responded, saying in a statement:
"The fentanyl epidemic has ravaged every section of our city for the last decade. I commend law enforcement and DA Krasner for this drug bust. However, this does not change the fact that Larry’s policy of refusing to prosecute drug possessions and drug sales over the last seven years has led to one of the largest open-air drug markets in Kensington, countless overdoses, and violent murders in the drug trade."