FBI drug bust included ties to 24 KT Gold in Town of Hamburg
By FELICE E. KRYCIA
Sun associate editor
An early morning raid Tuesday (March 2) of two gentleman’s entertainment clubs located in Western New York — including one in the Town of Hamburg — resulted in the arrest of 27 people, including a Lake View woman who is believed to be connected to a drug trafficking ring.
According to Earl Gould, spokesman for the FBI Buffalo Division Office, 24 Karat Gold on Lake Shore Road in Hamburg and Rick’s Tally-Ho on Genesee Street in Cheektowaga were searched Tuesday morning by members of the FBI Safe Streets Task Force and other police agencies, including the Town of Hamburg Police Department, after search warrants were executed at both locations.
“Both locations were closed at the time,” said Gould.
Of the warrants, 24 were local, with the other three being in Puerto Rico.
Among those taken into custody was 21-year-old Lindsay Poliseno of Lake View.
Also taken into custody were Jay Vellon, Dayane Velaquez, Luis Javier Vellon, Javier Leon, Luis Rodriguez, Maria Moreno, Angelo Dixon, Javier Vellon, Pedro Garcia, Robert Oliver, Matthew Farrell, Roberto Roman, Brenda Pirela and Jose Sierra, all of Buffalo; Kelly Kirk, Alyson Tremblay, Crysta Benning, Gloria Milan and Amanda Kachinas, all of Cheektowaga; Joseph Guarino of Las Vegas, Nevada; Cynthia Sims of Batavia; Amber Malkelke of Kenmore; and Jay Luis and Luis Vellon of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The other defendants named in the complaint are Alexis Centeno, who is already incarcerated in Buffalo, and Anthony Garcia, who is also incarcerated in San Juan on unrelated charges.
The complaint alleges that in the summer of 2005, an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation targeted a group of individuals who were believed to have been involved in a heroin distribution network in Buffalo.
The heroin was being distributed under the stamp of “Fear This.” The drug was being cut with ketamine, a horse tranquilizer, and was linked to several local deaths.
According to the FBI, because of the extensive media coverage regarding these overdose deaths, Vellon’s distribution network retreated. Some of the individuals responsible for the “Fear This” heroin moved to Puerto Rico, others were arrested following other investigations and others simply stopped trafficking drugs.
Following the execution of a federal search warrant, Jay Vellon was later arrested and was charged with possession of a firearm and served 18 months in prison. Following his release from prison, he was placed on federal probation.
According to the FBI, Vellon began to sell heroin and cocaine from multiple addresses on 7th Street and Whitney Place in Buffalo. Under Vellon’s direction, individuals involved in the drug organization made deliveries to 24 Karat Gold and Rick’s Tally Ho, the FBI said.
Eight search warrants were issued and executed Tuesday (March 2), including those for the two businesses, five addresses on 7th Street and Vellon’s residence on Libson Avenue in Buffalo.
During the investigation, large quantities of heroin, four weapons, jewelry, vehicles and approximately $20,000 cash were seized. The defendants are charged with committing numerous violations of federal law, including but not limited to distribution of a controlled substance; possession with intent to distribute and distribution of a controlled substance; use of a communication facility in furtherance of a controlled substance felony; conspiracy and attempt to commit a controlled substance felon; knowingly, willfully, intentionally and unlawfully engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise; distribution of a controlled substance near a school; laundering of monetary instruments; and monetary transactions involving property derived from unlawful activity.
The defendants arrested locally were scheduled to have their initial appearances Tuesday (March 2) in front of United States Magistrate for the Western District of New York Hugh B. Scott.
Prosecuting the case will be Assistant U.S. Attorneys George Burgasser and Michael McCabe, under the direction of Kathleen Mehltretter, U.S. Attorney for Western New York.
The investigation is continuing, the FBI said, and it will be up to the New York State Liquor Authority to see if the allegations of drug sales being operated from the two business locations will affect their liquor licenses, authorities said.
The FBI-Safe Streets Task Force is comprised of the following agencies: Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives; Erie County Probation Department; New York State Police; New York State Parole; and the Amherst Buffalo and Cheektowaga police departments.
In addition to the Town of Hamburg, additional agencies assisted the SSTF with the arrests and searches included U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Drug Enforcement Administration; United States Marshal’s Service; the Niagara County Sheriff’s Department and the Erie County Sheriff’s Department.
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