Bergen Men Arrested In Fentanyl Mail Distribution Scheme

Two Bergen County men, including one from Teaneck, were charged with conspiracy to distribute Fentanyl after police found two suspected kilograms of the substance inside one of the men's vehicles, authorities announced Friday.

Leo Mollette Jr., 41, of Lodi and Eric Stalsbroten, 38, were each arrested after an investigation by officials from the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal.

The agencies, along with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, received information that Mollette Jr. was obtaining packages containing Fentanyl through the U.S. Postal Service and was selling them throughout New Jersey, Grewal said.

Police conducted a operation at the Lodi Post Office Monday that led to Mollette Jr.'s and Stalsbroten's arrests, the prosecutor said.

Subsequently, authorities searched Stalsbroten's vehicle and found two packages, each with one kilogram of suspected Fentanyl inside, Grewal said.

The men were each charged with conspiring with another person or persons to possess a controlled dangerous substance, namely Fentanyl, in a quantity of one ounce or more and possession with intent to distribute a controlled dangerous substance, namely Fentanyl, in a quantity of one ounce or more, Grewal said. They were remanded to the Bergen County Jail pending a first appearance in county Judicial Processing Court.

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Photos: Leo Mollette Jr., 41, left, and Eric Stalsbroten, 38 — Bergen County Prosecutor's Office/Background image via Shutterstock