Hudson Co. Prosecutor Takes Down 'Major' Family-Run Drug Ring

HUDSON COUNTY, NJ — On Wednesday of this week, Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez announced the arrests of 20 people who she says were part of a major, family-run drug trafficking network that operated in North Jersey and New York City.

The ring operated out of Union City, where its alleged leader, Juan Tejada, lived. Nearly two dozen associates reported to him, including his wife and two brothers, said Suarez. The Tejada family used a barbershop and a used-car lot as legitimate front businesses.

The drug ring was one of North Jersey's largest suppliers of fentanyl, heroin and cocaine, said the county prosecutor.

The drugs were primarily sold to customers in Union City, North Bergen, West New York, Bayonne and other towns in Essex, Bergen and Union counties. Tejada hired couriers to deliver the narcotics to his customers throughout the North Jersey region.

There does not appear to be any connection to Secaucus. Secaucus police were not involved in the takedown.

The county prosecutor, aided by the NYPD and Homeland Security, has been investigating the Tejada family drug ring for more than a year, she said.

The fentanyl and heroin pills were manufactured in a building in Washington Heights, Manhattan, operated by a man named Juan Carlos Moreno. Moreno is accused of producing tens of thousands of fentanyl and mixed fentanyl/heroin pills from there, which law enforcement says he provided to the Tejada drug trafficking network — and eventually into the hands (and arms) of New Jersey residents.

Bail hearings for all have been set for Feb. 8, and additional arrests are expected.

“This was a large-scale, highly-organized narcotics trafficking network that for years had operated in Northern New Jersey and New York City,” said Prosecutor Suarez. “The Tejada brothers used front businesses and counter-surveillance and had built an intricate network they believed was impenetrable by law enforcement."

“The veneer of seemingly legitimate businesses that include a barber shop and a used car lot gave the Tejada family the appearance of normalcy. However, the reality was quite different,” said Jason Molina, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Newark.

"The Tejada brothers and their organization have filled our streets with fentanyl and cocaine. That ends today," he said.

In addition to the arrests, officers seized more than 9,400 grams of fentanyl, more than 3,400 grams of cocaine, more than 1,700 grams of methamphetamine, more than 800 grams of fentanyl pills, approximately eight grams of heroin and a loaded firearm.

The Task Force also seized approximately $118,395 in United States currency. The street value of the total quantity of narcotics seized is approximately $1 million.

The Hudson County prosecutor executed search warrants at approximately two dozen locations across North Jersey as part of the takedown.

The following individuals were arrested and charged:

1. Juan Tejada, AKA “RANGER,” age 31, of Union City
2. Enmanuel Tejada, age 24, of Union City
3. Jancel Tejada, age 30, of Union City
4. Manuel Rodriguez, AKA “MANOLO,” age 49, of Union City
5. Milka Dominguez, AKA “RACHEL,” age 32, of Union City
6. Juan Carlos Moreno, AKA “SAMUEL,” age 43, of Manhattan, NY
7. Jesus Leon-Segura, AKA “CHARRO,” age 48, of Union City
8. Jorge Bisono, AKA “FLACO,” age 34, of Union City
9. Ammar Haimor, AKA “ARAB,” age 27, of Ridgefield
10. Jassell Ventura, age 26, of Newark
11. Rafael Franco, AKA “RAFFY,” age 34, of Newark
12. Milton Gomez, Jr., age 51, of Bayonne
13. Melvin Aviles, AKA “BORI,” age 37, of North Bergen
14. Jose Cruz-Perez, AKA “LAPIZ,” age 22, of Union City
15. Richard Gonzalez, age 36, of Elizabeth
16. Curtis Lamont Lane, age 46, of Jersey City
17. Aligie Delatorre, AKA “LIGI,” age 29, of Belleville
18. Fidel Torres, age 54, of Union City
19. Jeremy Lopez-Urena, age 21, of West New York
20. Antonio Hidalgo, AKA “CACONA,” age 43, of Manhattan

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