Global Navigation
Office of The Attorney General
The State of New Jersey Office of The Attorney General (Dept. of Law & Public Safety) The State of New Jersey NJ Home Services A to Z Departments/Agencies OAG Frequently Asked Questions
Services A to Z Departments/Agencies OAG Frequently Asked Questions
OAG Home
OAG Contact
spacer
Back to News Releases
OAG Home Attorney General's Biography
Attorney General's Biography
spacer spacer spacer
 
spacer spacer spacer
spacer spacer spacer
For Immediate Release:
For Further Information:
August 7, 2012 

Office of The Attorney General
- Jeffrey S. Chiesa, Attorney General
Division of Criminal Justice
- Stephen J. Taylor, Director
Media Inquiries-
Peter Aseltine
609-292-4791

Citizen Inquiries-

609-984-5828
spacer
spacer spacer spacer
spacer
Indictment Charges 30 with First-Degree Racketeering in Probe of Violent Perth Amboy-Based Heroin Ring Linked to Ñetas Gang
Kidnapping, robbery & prison drug dealing alleged in investigation by AG’s Office, Perth Amboy Police, U.S. DEA, Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office & Department of Corrections
spacer
spacer spacer spacer
spacer
Click to Enlarge Image
spacer
spacer spacer spacer
spacer
View Indictment
spacer
spacer spacer spacer
spacer

TRENTON – Attorney General Jeffrey S. Chiesa announced that the Division of Criminal Justice has obtained an indictment charging the alleged leader and 29 alleged members and associates of a violent Perth Amboy-based drug network linked to the Ñetas street gang with first-degree racketeering.  The network allegedly trafficked heroin and crack cocaine on the street in Middlesex County and in New Jersey State Prison in Trenton.

The indictment stems from Operation New Era Taking Action, a joint investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice, Perth Amboy Police Department, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office and N.J. Department of Corrections.

The 32-count state grand jury indictment, handed up in court yesterday, charges the alleged leader of the network, Danni Rivera, 28, of Rahway, an alleged high-ranking member of the Ñetas, with the crime of leader of a narcotics trafficking network, a first-degree offense that carries a sentence of life in state prison, including 25 years of parole ineligibility.  Rivera, who is being held on $1 million bail, is also charged with kidnapping, a first-degree offense that carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison, for allegedly ordering the kidnapping of a young man who was beaten, taken to a motel in Sayreville, and held at gunpoint in December 2009.  Rivera was indicted previously in that kidnapping, but the earlier indictment is superseded by this one.  A total of 31 defendants are named in the indictment.  Thirty, including Rivera, are charged with first-degree racketeering.

“We charge that Danni Rivera used violence and the threat of violence to exert control over his drug network as a local leader of the Ñetas,” said Attorney General Chiesa. “The kidnapping alleged in this indictment demonstrates his willingness to resort to violence. Through cooperative, multi-agency investigations, we’re targeting the drug dealing and violence plaguing our urban centers.”

“We’ll continue to partner across jurisdictional lines to secure major indictments such as this one, which could potentially put these gang members and associates behind bars for a long time,” said Director Stephen J. Taylor of the Division of Criminal Justice.

It is alleged that Rivera, as a local leader of the Ñetas, exercised control and authority over the other members of the narcotics network.  Rivera and seven other defendants face various second- or third-degree drug charges in connection with alleged drug sales or drugs seized during the investigation.  Two of the defendants, Damien Castro, 28, of Carteret, and Richard Orengo, 30, of Perth Amboy, are charged with robbery for allegedly shaking down a drug dealer who was competing with the Ñetas in Perth Amboy.  A Perth Amboy detective allegedly witnessed the robbery on March 9, 2011, and the two men were arrested. Orengo and another defendant, Roy Remiggio, 33, of Keasbey, are charged with second-degree witness tampering for allegedly coercing the victim of the robbery into signing a statement denying that he was robbed.

Rivera and 14 co-defendants are also charged with conspiracy and money laundering in connection with a scheme to sell heroin to inmates in New Jersey State Prison in Trenton.  It is alleged that two inmates in the prison, William Suarez, 27, and Eligio Bueno, 30, both of whom are Ñetas serving sentences for murder, conspired with Rivera and others to take heroin orders from fellow inmates and have heroin smuggled to the customers inside the prison. They allegedly would direct the inmates to have money sent to the defendants outside the prison, for delivery to Rivera’s sister, Isis Rivera, 27, of South Amboy, or another intermediary.

In addition to the first-degree kidnapping charge, Rivera also faces second-degree charges of conspiracy and aggravated assault in connection with the alleged abduction.  Three other men previously pleaded guilty in the kidnapping.  David Santana, 22, of Perth Amboy, and Oswaldo Santillan Jr., 21, of Perth Amboy, each pleaded guilty to first-degree kidnapping.  Under their plea agreements, each man faces a sentence of 10 years in state prison, 85 percent of which must be served without parole under the No Early Release Act. Hector Montoya-Garay, 23, of Perth Amboy, pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal restraint and faces up to five years in prison. 

The investigation revealed that the kidnapping victim, who was 18 at the time, had gotten into trouble with Rivera, and Rivera allegedly ordered the other three men to carry out the kidnapping.  In pleading guilty, Santillan admitted that he and Santana ambushed the victim at a house in Perth Amboy on Dec. 5, 2009, forcing him into a van driven by Montoya-Garay.  Santillan and Santana beat the victim inside the van and outside at a remote location.  The victim suffered a broken nose, black eyes, cuts and other injuries. The three men then took the victim to a motel in Sayreville, where they held him at gunpoint and threatened to kill him.  The victim escaped after Santillan and Santana departed, leaving Montoya-Garay to guard him.

Deputy Attorney General Russell Curley presented the case to the state grand jury.  The investigation was led by Detective Sgt. Keith Stopko of the Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau.  Attorney General Chiesa commended all of the law enforcement personnel who worked on the investigation, including the Perth Amboy Police Department’s Special Investigations Unit, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, and Senior Investigator Raphael Dolce and other members of the N.J. Department of Corrections Special Investigations Division.  Attorney General Chiesa also thanked the New Jersey State Police Intelligence Section for their valuable assistance.

The following is a full list of the 31 defendants (all but Remiggio are charged with first-degree racketeering):

  1. Danni Rivera, 28, of Rahway,
  2. Isis Rivera, 27, of South Amboy,
  3. Jesus Criado, 28, of Newark,
  4. William Suarez, 27, of New Jersey State Prison, Trenton,
  5. Eligio Bueno, 30, of New Jersey State Prison, Trenton,
  6. Andre Ocasio, 36, of Bloomfield,
  7. Damien Castro, 28, of Carteret,
  8. Richard Orengo, 40, of Perth Amboy,
  9. Roy Remiggio, 33, of Keasbey,
  10. Antonio Martinez, 26, of Newark,
  11. Hector DelValle, 44, of Newark,
  12. Jonathan Nieves, 31, of Woodbridge,
  13. Alexander Cosme, 27, of Perth Amboy,
  14. Josue Santiago, 29, of Perth Amboy,
  15. Willie Brown, 43, of Carteret,
  16. Alexander Rosario, 20, of Perth Amboy,
  17. David Rivera, 48, of Brooklyn, N.Y.,
  18. William Gonzales, 51, of Brooklyn, N.Y.,
  19. Jacqueline Devargas, 25, of Perth Amboy,
  20. Carol Rivera, 25, of Perth Amboy,
  21. Deborah Conroy, 55, of Newark,
  22. Mario Flores, 49, of New Jersey State Prison, Trenton,
  23. Dora Figueroa, 47, of Camden,
  24. Mona Alphonse, 55, of Irvington,
  25. Carmen Zepeda, 54, of Los Angeles, Calif.,
  26. Rosalee Howard, 53, of Elizabeth,
  27. Maria Del Cid, 27, of Westbury, N.Y.,
  28. Alberto Melendez, 21, of Perth Amboy,
  29. Jufranio Blanco, 20, of Perth Amboy,
  30. Thomas Stuhrmann, 34, of Newark, and
  31. Veronica Martinez, 23, of Newark.

The first-degree charge of leader of a narcotics trafficking network carries a sentence of life in state prison, including 25 years without possibility of parole, and a fine of up to $750,000. The first-degree kidnapping charge carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in state prison and a $200,000 fine.  The other first-degree charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in state prison and a $200,000 fine.  Second-degree crimes carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison and a $150,000 fine.   Third-degree crimes carry a maximum sentence of five years in state prison and a $15,000 fine.  The second-degree counts of certain persons not to have weapons carry a mandatory period of parole ineligibility of five years in state prison, and the count of unlawful possession of a handgun carries a mandatory period of parole ineligibility of three to five years in state prison.

The indictment is merely an accusation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Middlesex County, where the defendants will be ordered to appear in court at a later date for arraignment on the charges.

###

spacer
spacer spacer spacer
spacer
 
 
Contact OAG About OAG
OAG News OAG Frequently Asked Questions
OAG Library Employment
OAG Grants Proposed Rules
OAG History OAG Services A-Z
OAG Agencies / Programs / Units
Other News Pages Otras Noticias en Español Division of NJ State Police Division of Law News Governor's Office News Division of Highway Traffic Safety News Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Juvenile Justice Commission News Division on Civil Rights News Division of Consumer Affairs News Division of Criminal Justice News Election Law Enforcement Commission Division of Gaming Enforcement News
NJ State Police News Governor's Office News Division of Highway Traffic Safety News Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Juvenile Justice Commission News Division on Civil Rights News Division of Consumer Affairs News Division of Criminal Justice News Election Law Enforcement Commission Division of Elections News Division of Gaming Enforcement News Office of Government Integrity News

free PDF plugin

NJ State Police News Governor's Office News Division of Highway Traffic Safety News Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Juvenile Justice Commission News Division on Civil Rights News Division of Consumer Affairs News Division of Criminal Justice News Election Law Enforcement Commission Division of Elections News Division of Gaming Enforcement News Office of Government Integrity News
   
Contact Us | Privacy Notice | Legal Statement | Accessibility Statement
NJ Home Logo
Departmental: OAG Home | Contact OAG | About OAG | OAG News | OAG FAQs
Statewide: NJ Home | Services A to Z | Departments/Agencies | FAQs
Copyright © State of New Jersey
This page is maintained by OAG Communications. Comments/Questions: email or call 609-292-4925
OAG Home OAG Home NJ State Police News Governor's Office News Division of Highway Traffic Safety News Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Juvenile Justice Commission News Division on Civil Rights News Division of Consumer Affairs News Division of Criminal Justice News Election Law Enforcement Commission Division of Elections News Division of Gaming Enforcement News Office of Government Integrity News Click to Enlarge Image Click to Enlarge Image Click to Enlarge Graphic Click to enlarge chart Click to enlarge map