October 06, 2010
Contact: DEA Special Agent Douglas S. Collier, M.A.
Public Information Officer
TEL: (973) 776-1143
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Charges Eight Longshoremen
and Three others with Cocaine Trafficking
at The Port of New York and New Jersey
  
1.3 Metric Tons of Cocaine Worth More Than $34 Million Seized; Investigation also Leads to Charges Against 11 Others, Including an Additional Longshoreman, for $7 Million Stock Fraud Scheme that Used Social Networking Sites
Preet Bharara - US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Right: John G. McCabe Jr., Acting Special Agent in Charge John G. McCabe Jr., Acting Special Agent in Charge - Speaking at the Press Conference
SEP 28  -- John G. McCabe, Jr., the Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the New Jersey Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration ("DEA") and Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, along with Victor W. Lessoff, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the New Jersey Office of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations ("IRS-CI"), Peter T. Edge, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the Newark Office of Homeland Security Investigations ("HSI"), Joseph Fisch, the Inspector General of New York State, Ronald Goldstock, the Commissioner of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, Robert E. Perez, the Director of Field Operations of the New York Field Office of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Marjorie Franzman, Special Agent-in-Charge for the New York Regional Office of the United States Department of Labor, Office of Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations, announced today charges against 22defendants, including 9 longshoremen, arising out of a two-year investigation into criminal conduct connected to the Port of New York and New Jersey (the "Port").
21 of the 22 charged defendants have been arrested. The defendants arrested in the New York area are expected to appear in Manhattan federal court later today. One defendant, Arnold Eugene Rodgers, is still being sought.
Acting Special Agent-in-Charge of the New Jersey Division of the DEA John G. McCabe, Jr., said: "The DEA New Jersey Division utilized its global investigative arm and netted an international drug trafficking organization that operated a multifaceted criminal enterprise within the New York and New Jersey area, particularly the Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal. International drug trafficking crosses all criminal boundaries. Through DEA's single mission investigative process, we hampered this organization's ability to traffic tons of cocaine and disrupted a significant stock market manipulation scheme."
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: "The public places great trust in the longshoremen who work at our ports. But their integrity is all that stands between our border and those who seek to bring contraband - and worse - into our country. The Port of New York and New Jersey is one of the most important hubs for commerce and trade in the world. And, in today's world, we simply can't afford to have a single corrupt longshoreman. We will continue to work tirelessly with our federal, state, and local partners to ensure that the Port does not become a hub of criminal activity."
Special Agent-in-Charge of the New Jersey Office of the IRS-CI Victor W. Lessoff said: "The crimes alleged in this case show how something that appears to be a sure thing can be a mask for a tangled web of financial lies."
Kilograms of Cocaine Seized by DEA New Jersey Division during the operation. Pump and Dump Scam
Special Agent-in-Charge of the Newark Office HSI Peter T. Edge said: "Drug trafficking organizations moving illegal drugs through our seaports and ports of entry will be aggressively attacked and dismantled. This investigation with our law enforcement partners also uncovered and shut down a multimillion-dollar 'pump and dump' stock fraud scheme, dealing a major blow to this criminal organization."
Commissioner of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor Ronald Goldstock said: "These arrests are another step in the continuing battle to rid the Port of organized criminal activity. The Waterfront Commission is committed to working with its law enforcement partners through both criminal and administrative actions to achieve that objective."
New York Inspector General Joseph Fisch said: "I wish to commend U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, as well as the DEA, the Waterfront Commission, the IRS, and the Office of Homeland Security, for their intensive investigations and the prosecution of 22 people accused of financial schemes and the trafficking of massive amounts of cocaine through the Port of New York and New Jersey. This action was the result of close cooperation between the various law enforcement agencies and offers encouragement to achieving the ultimate goal of eliminating corruption at the Port of New York and New Jersey. I am confident that the current leadership of the Waterfront Commission will continue its efforts towards such a goal."
Special Agent-in-Charge for the New York Regional Office of the DOL OIG, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations Marjorie Franzman said: "Today's charges demonstrate our ongoing efforts to combat crime on the waterfront in New York and New Jersey. Among those arrested were several members of the International Longshoremen's Association, who allegedly used their membership - and the access it granted them at the ports - to facilitate the crimes outlined in today's charges. The Office of Inspector General is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to investigate labor-related fraud taking place on the ports."
Director of New York Field Operations for U.S. Customs and Border Protection Robert E. Perez said: "CBP is committed to protecting the American public from any type of external threat. CBP officers in the greater New York area are some of the best trained and most successful in detecting and intercepting contraband items despite many cunning concealment methods."
In three separate complaints, U.S. Attorney Bharara charged the 22 defendants with participating in, among other crimes: (1) conspiring to import more than 1.3 metric tons of cocaine, valued at over $34 million, into and through the Port; and (2) a "pump and dump" stock fraud scheme that allegedly resulted in a loss of at least $7 million in shareholder value.
The Complaints (the "Narcotics Complaint," the "Rodgers Complaint," and the "Pump and Dump Complaint") unsealed today in Manhattan federal court are described in greater detail below.