NYC Drug Ring Swept $3.5M Of Cocaine Into Swiffer Boxes: Feds

NEW YORK CITY — A drug bust in the Bronx swept up $3.5 million of cocaine found stuffed into Swiffer cleaning product boxes, authorities said.

DEA agents and local cops seized 25 pounds of cocaine and arrested three men over Monday and Tuesday, authorities said.

One of the men — Jose Velez, 40 — had recently traveled to Puerto Rico, where boxes containing the cocaine-stuffed Swiffer goods were shipped from, according to a release. Velez's apartment in Morris Park also had an automatic weapon, in addition to a stash of cocaine, authorities said.

“The court authorized search of this apartment very likely prevented gun violence, which has plagued our city, and especially the Bronx,” Bridget G. Brennan, the city's special narcotics prosecutor, said in a statement. “High-level drug trafficking extracts a tragic toll from our communities in violence and lives lost to substance use.”

Two children were also in Velez's apartment at the center of the probe, authorities said.

The investigation began with DEA surveillance of Velez's home, where they saw him leave on Monday with a bag that he dropped off in a Mercedes-Benz driven by Melina Masullo, 27, authorities said. They stop Masullo at a McDonalds and searched the car.

"The grey shopping bag was on the front passenger seat and appeared to contain a white brick-shaped object," a release states. "Further inspection revealed the bag allegedly contained two kilograms of cocaine."

Other agents saw Jordan Worthley, 29, of Hackensack, walk into Velez's home, authorities said. They stopped Wortheley and Velez as the pair went outside and wait for a search warrant.

A search of Velez's apartment and car yielded 12 pounds of cocaine, $350,000 and the guns, authorities said. Wortheley's car had two cardboard packing boxes with shipping labels showing they came from Puerto Rico, where Velez had recently traveled.

"Each shipping box was addressed to a storage facility and contained a kilogram of cocaine concealed inside a Swiffer Wet Mopping Cloths box," a release states. "Snack packs surrounded the Swiffer boxes. A third Swiffer box concealing a kilogram of cocaine was also inside the car."

Velez is accused of running cocaine dealing ring and faces multiple charges, including operating as a major trafficker. He's being held on $250,000 cash bail, authorities said.

Masullo and Worthley were set to be arraigned on criminal possession charges, authorities said.