Police seize major cache of guns/heroin; 5 busted
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BY JASON COHEN
A major drug and gunrunning
operation was busted last
week sending fi ve people to the
slammer.
On Thursday, February
13, NYS Attorney General Letitia
James and the police announced
a 107-count indictment,
charging fi ve individuals
for their roles in a gun traffi cking
operation that illegally
sold 16 fi rearms in the Bronx,
including four assault weapons,
11 high-capacity ammunition
feeding devices, hundreds
of rounds of ammunition and
heroin.
Luis Alsina, Michael Alsina,
Miguel Rodriguez, Josue
Pagan-Adorno and Rafael Cruz
were charged with traffi cking
numerous assault weapons,
semiautomatic pistols,
revolvers, criminal sale of a
fi rearm, criminal possession
of a weapon and conspiracy for
their participation in the illegal
gun traffi cking operation.
All of the individuals are
from the Bronx, except Pagan-
Adorno.
The Alsinas were charged
with various counts pertaining
to the sale of approximately 250
grams of heroin and charged
Guns that the attorney general’s offi ce and law enforcement took off the streets last week in a big bust.
Photo Courtesy NYAG Offi ce
with criminal sale of a controlled
substance and criminal
possession of a controlled substance,
as well as conspiracy for
their participation in an illegal
heroin distribution scheme.
“Let these arrests serve as
a loud and clear message: there
is zero tolerance for gun traffi
cking in New York,” James
said. “These fi ve individuals
allegedly made a business of
fl ooding our communities with
dangerous weapons - including
assault weapons -and drugs,
putting our city in harm’s way.
I thank our partners in law enforcement
for their invaluable
support and help to ensure the
safety of all New Yorkers.”
The investigation, dubbed
‘Operation Iron Empire,’ included
the use of physical and
electronic surveillance and undercover
operations.
During the course of the
recorded transactions, the defendants
allegedly referenced
their ability to obtain guns
from Pennsylvania and bring
them into New York to be sold.
According to the indictment,
Michael Alsina acted as
a broker between his fi rearms
suppliers and undercover offi -
cers, to whom he sold fi rearms
and/or ammunition on 10 occasions
between June 22, 2019
and Nov. 12, 2019.
Luis Alsina provided the
fi rearms and/or ammunition
to Michael Alsina for seven of
those 10 sales and also sold fi rearms
to undercover offi cers
on three other occasions from
June 22, 2019 through December
27, 2019.
Rafael Cruz supplied two
fi rearms for sales brokered by
Michael Alsina, while Josue
Pagan-Adorno and Miguel Rodriguez
transported fi rearms
for sale to undercover offi cers.
The indictment also alleges
that Luis Alsina and Michael
Alsina combined to sell approximately
250 grams of heroin to
undercover offi cers on four occasions
spanning from August
7, 2019 through September 5,
2019.
Bronx District Attorney
Darcel Clark praised James
and law enforcement for their
efforts.
“We will not tolerate illegal
fi rearms getting into the hands
of criminals,” Clark said.