Cops Arrest 75, Recover Guns During Drug Sweep In Essex County

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — One week. 75 arrests. That was the end result of a seven-day, city-wide narcotics sweep conducted in Newark between Monday, July 17 and Sunday, July 23, authorities say.

During the campaign, Newark police officers police arrested 75 individuals - including residents of Montclair and East Orange - recovered six guns and $13,166 cash in suspected proceeds from drug sales, and confiscated 2,938 decks of heroin, 113 vials of cocaine, 113 plastic bags of marijuana and 33 unspecified “pills.”

The confiscated narcotics had an estimated street value of $31,640, according to the Newark Department of Public Safety.

According to police, some of the allegations include:

• On July 18, Sharrod Wilder, 27, of Montclair, was arrested and found in possession of a loaded .32 caliber handgun while wearing a monitoring bracelet in the area of North 12th Street and 6th Avenue. He was charged with Unlawful Possession of a Weapon and Contempt of Court.
• On July 18, Karim E. Jessie, 28, of Newark, was arrested in the area of North 12th Street and 6th Avenue for possession of a loaded .22 caliber handgun. He was charged with Unlawful Possession of a Weapon.
• On July 21, police recovered a weapon during the execution of a search warrant at Riverview Court. Anwar Stephenson, 35, was arrested and charged with Contempt of Court for an outstanding warrant. A ML3-M16 rifle was confiscated as part of the search warrant.
• On July 22, Gregory Danson, 66, of Newark, was arrested, also as a result of the execution of a search warrant, at a South Ward residence. Police confiscated a loaded AR-15 rifle and .357 caliber pistol along with 725 decks of heroin and four vials of cocaine. Danson was charged with two counts each of Unlawful Possession of a Weapon, Certain Persons Prohibited from Weapon Possession, Possession of a Weapon While Committing a Narcotics Offense, Possession of a Prohibited Weapon (AR-15 rifle), Possession of Prohibited Weapon (high capacity magazine), Possession of CDS (heroin and cocaine), CDS Distribution, Distributing CDS Within 1,000-feet of a School and Distributing CDS Within 500-feet of a Park.

Others charged with CDS Possession and Distribution during the week-long operation include: Lamar Walker, 22, of Phillipsburg; Jayvon Pender, 25, of Hillside; Bishop Jackson, 20, of Willingborough; and Ikechi Anaele, 35, Ahmed Burks, 38, Vanessa S. Thompson, 25, Imani T. Sapini, 25, and Daveon Wilson, 20, all of Newark; along with a juvenile from East Orange and two juveniles, also from Newark.

Those arrested for CDS Possession include: Allen Brown, 27, of East Orange; Anuj Kumar, 24, of Kearny; and Seamus Donahue, 44, Angelo Valle, 44, Ashli Sinclair, 29, David Vaughn, 66, William Beck, 37, Jose Deleon, 22, Decori Fluitt, 20, and William Black, 26, all of Newark.

Several other suspects were arrested on outstanding warrants or Wandering to Purchase CDS as part of the operation, authorities said.

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