Freehold Man Among 25 Arrested In $300K Trenton Drug Ring Bust: State Police

TRENTON, NJ — A Freehold man is among 25 people arrested following a 10-month investigation into a drug trafficking organization in the Mercer County area that resulted in the seizure of more than $300,000 worth of heroin and cocaine, along with weapons and cash, New Jersey State Police announced Friday evening.

“The takedown of this violent group is critical to the safety of the citizens of Trenton, and it helps to curb the flow of heroin and guns into the city and surrounding area,” said Colonel Rick Fuentes, superintendent of the New Jersey State Police.

The investigation, dubbed “Operation Maple Empire,” was led by the New Jersey State Police Gangs and Organized Crime Central Unit, state police said in a news release.

The arrests happened Monday, May 15, and Tuesday, May 16, when detectives from the state police, the Trenton Police Department, the FBI, Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office, ATF, U.S. Marshal’s NY/NJ Regional Fugitive Task Force, Ewing Police Department, Hamilton Police Department, and the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office executed search warrants at various locations in Trenton. Police allege the drug trafficking ring operated in the area of Maple Avenue in Trenton.

Authorities allege that Shawn T. Davis, 41, of Hamilton, was a major heroin supplier who, along with Tracy Edwards, 24, of Trenton and the others arrested in this operation, conspired to distribute heroin throughout Trenton, state Attorney General Christopher Porrino said.

The group "supplied the street-level drug dealing that is behind most of the gun violence in Trenton,” Porrino said.

The search warrants resulted in the seizure of three handguns, $264,000 worth of heroin, $52,000 worth of cocaine, $1,700 worth of Ecstasy, $1,900 worth of marijuana, $13,676 cash, drug packaging materials, and drug paraphernalia, state police said.

Those arrested were:

• Shawn T. Davis, 41, of Hamilton Township
• Tracy Edwards, 24, of Trenton
• Jerome Person, 38, of Trenton
• Ricardo Cruz, 43, of Trenton
• Taibika Dawson, 42, of Trenton
• Angelica Mendez, 26, of Trenton
• Aramis J. Wright, 44, of Trenton
• Victoria Loftin, 28, of Trenton
• Julisa Burton, 26, of Trenton
• Prince O. Jones Jr., 44, of Trenton
• Charlene Rodriguez, 27, of Trenton
• William Holzendorf, 47, of Trenton
• Donovan O. Vereen, 22, of Trenton
• Brequan J. Womack, 29, of Trenton
• Willie A. Green III, 26, of Trenton
• Leon Ingram, 38, of Trenton
• Rush Marzah, 24, of Trenton
• Jaquan Bland, 26, Trenton
• Traitiana Edwards, 28, of Trenton
• Karl Davis, 31, of Levittown, Pa.
• Tamica Freemen, 37, of Trenton
• Glen Moore, 47, of Whiting
• Christopher Ochs, 44, of Allentown, NJ
• Robert Minelli, 59, of Ewing
• George Martz, 58, of Freehold

Robert Minelli, Glen Moore, Christopher Ochs, Aramis J. Wright, Leon Ingram, and Julsia Burton were released pending court, State Police said. All others were taken to the Mercer County Jail and are awaiting a bail hearing.

The case is being prosecuted by the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. Members of the Bucks County, Pennsylvania Prosecutor’s Office also assisted with the investigation.

“Operations like this send a strong message that law enforcement stands with the people of Trenton, who want their city to be a safe place to live, work, and raise children, not an open-air drug market,” said Elie Honig, director of the Division of Criminal Justice. “We will aggressively prosecute these defendants.”

“This operation was successful because of the cooperation and positive working relationship we have with our federal, county, and local partners,” Fuentes said.

Handcuffs image via Shutterstock