Dealer Caught With 19 Kilos Of Fentanyl At Cross County Mall: Feds

WESTCHESTER COUNTY, NY — Federal prosecutors say a New York man caught with a large haul of fentanyl in the parking lot of a Westchester County shopping center will face federal charges.

Justo Vargas was charged for possessing nearly 20 kilograms of fentanyl with the intent to distribute it, in concert with others, Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Frank A. Tarentino III, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the DEA have announced. Vargas was arrested on Sunday.

"As alleged, the defendant conspired to distribute fentanyl, one of the deadliest drugs on Earth," Williams said. "Thanks to our law enforcement partners, nearly 20 kilograms of this poison have been taken off the street."

On Sunday, Vargas met with a confidential informant to sell approximately 19 kilograms of fentanyl, according to investigators. Vargas arrived at the Cross County Center parking lot and parked adjacent to the confidential source’s car. Both the prospective buyer and seller exited their respective vehicles and stood next to the open trunk of Vargas's car, which feds say contained what appeared to the confidential source to be 19 kilograms of fentanyl. Agents and officers then intervened and arrested Vargas and seized the suspected fentanyl.

Williams praised the DEA’s New York Drug Enforcement Task Force comprising agents and officers of the DEA, the New York City Police Department, and New York State Police. Mr. Williams also thanked the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and the Yonkers Police Department for their assistance in this case.

The 31 year-old New Yorker is charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams and more of fentanyl and one count of conspiring to do the same. Those offenses carry mandatory minimum sentences of 10 years in prison and maximum potential sentences of life in prison.