10 Arrested In Toms River Motel Raid: Police

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Ten people were arrested last week as Toms River police raided the Americana Motel and its manager's office as part of an ongoing narcotics investigation, police said Thursday.

Two search warrants were executed at the motel, at 925 Route 166, on Nov. 22 by the police department's Special Enforcement Team and Quality of Life Task Force, Toms River police spokesman Ralph Stocco said. Those arrested were from Beachwood, Brick Township, the Forked River section of Lacey, Seaside Heights, South Toms River, Waretown, and four were from Toms River, he said.

One of the search warrants was for the manager’s office and pertained to an ongoing narcotics investigation, he said.

The arrests ranged from those sought on outstanding warrants to charges of possession and distribution of drugs, Stocco said. A fire inspection also was conducted by the Bureau of Fire Prevention and the motel was found to be in violation of several fire codes, which will be addressed with the owners, Stocco said.

This is the second such raid by the Quality of Life Task Force that was established earlier this fall. In early October, 15 people were arrested during a raid at the Red Carpet Inn on Water Street.

The task force includes members of the police department, fire officials, and the code and zoning enforcement bureaus and was set up to investigate nuisances and criminal activity throughout the township, including violations within residential areas, township officials have said.

"The main objective of the task force is to ensure Toms River is a safe community and to improve the quality of life for all of its residents and visitors," Stocco said.

Those arrested and the charges filed against them were as follows:

Craig Soltes, 42, the manager of the Americana Motel, charged with possession of CDS, possession of drug paraphernalia, and possession of a hypodermic syringe

Joel Cotto, 37, of Pennsylvania Avenue, Waretown, possession of CDS, possession of CDS with intent to distribute

Lisamarie Narciso, 26, of Attision Avenue, South Toms River, possession of CDS, possession of hypodermic syringe

Carl Disalvo, 65, of Neptune Avenue, Beachwood, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of hypodermic syringe

Alexander Salek, 29, of Chadwick Avenue, Toms River, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of hypodermic syringe

Donna Salek, 53, of Chadwick Avenue, Toms River, possession of CDS, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of hypodermic syringe

Caitlin Mayer, 29, of Redwood Drive, Brick, contempt of court warrants, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Possession of Hypodermic
Syringe

Joseph Davis, 47, of Boulevard Avenue, Seaside Heights, on contempt of court warrants of $500

Matthew Diaz, 53, of Shadow Oaks Drive, Toms River, on contempt of court warrants of $2,500

Lennon Ambrose, 38, of East Lacey Road, Forked River, on contempt of court warrants of $6,250

The township passed an ordinance on Tuesday evening that tightens operating rules for motels and hotels in the township, requiring identification, prohibiting stays of fewer than 12 hours and limiting stays to 90 days.

The Americana Motel has run afoul of the law in the past; one of its owners, Sandipkumar Patel, was sentenced in September 2016 to three years in prison after he defrauded the state and federal authorities of more than $81,000 in connection with Superstorm Sandy. The money has since been repaid, Attorney General Christopher Porrino said at the time of sentencing.

Patel admitted that he fraudulently obtained $81,567 from the FEMA Transitional Shelter Assistance (TSA) program. Under the program, FEMA directly paid participating hotels and motels for rooms temporarily occupied by residents displaced by Superstorm Sandy. FEMA paid the Americana Motel $133.28 per day for each room occupied by storm victims, Porrino said.

Americana Motel, image via Google Maps; arrestee photos provided by Toms River Police Department