Postal Worker Implicated In Hudson County Cocaine Scheme: Prosecutors

HUDSON COUNTY, NJ — A third person — in this case, a postal employee — has now been charged in connection with a months-long narcotics investigation at a West New York residence, the Hudson County Prosecutor's Office announced on Thursday.

James Belardo, 41, of West New York was arrested without incident on Wednesday, March 15, at the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office in Secaucus, prosecutors said.

Belardo, a United States Postal Service employee, has been charged with conspiracy to distribute (cocaine) in a quantity greater than one-half ounce. He was released pending a court appearance on March 29.

Two co-defendants, Rowaldi Caceres, 39, and Hilda Membreno, 29, both of West New
York, were arrested late last month (read more here). They were charged with weapons and drug offenses, as well as endangering the welfare of a minor.

In the West New York residence, investigators found more than one kilogram of cocaine — with the street value of approximately $35,000 — a handgun, three large capacity magazines, and approximately $30,000, suspected proceeds from narcotics transactions, they said. Another gun was found in Caceres' car the next day, prosecutors said.

Prosecutor Esther Suarez credited the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office Narcotics Task Force, the United States Postal Inspection Service, and the United States Postal Service Office of the
Inspector General with the investigation and arrest.