10 Kilos Coke, Half Kilo Heroin Seized During North Shore Drug Trafficking Arrests

Swampscott, MA - Three North Shore residents, including a man and a woman from Swampscott, were arraigned in Lynn District Court on Monday for charges related to allegedly running a major coke and heroin trafficking operation on the North Shore.

During the arrest in Lynn on Friday, authorities seized approximately 10 kilos of cocaine and a half kilo of heroin with an estimated street value of $800,000.

Melkis Pena, 53, of Swampscott, Jonathan Sosa, 31, of Lynn, and Gerson Ceballos-Rosario, 37, of Swampscott, were arrested Friday in a joint operation involving Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Attorney General’s Office and the Massachusetts State Police Transportation Drug Unit (TDU), with assistance from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Swampscott and Lynn Police Departments.

Authorities arrested the three individuals Friday evening in Lynn after what they observed what they believed to be a drug transaction occurring in a vehicle. Authorities seized approximately 10 kilograms of suspected cocaine and a half kilo of what is suspected to be heroin after search warrants were executed on the vehicle and at an address linked to Sosa. Authorities also seized $15,000 in cash and supplies and materials known to be associated with drug packaging and distribution.

“We allege that these three individuals ran a significant drug operation on the North Shore that was responsible for bringing heroin and cocaine into Massachusetts communities,” said Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey. “We will continue to work with our local, state, and federal partners to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who traffic these lethal drugs.”

The defendants were arraigned on Monday in Lynn District Court on one count each of Trafficking in Heroin over 200 Grams and Trafficking in Cocaine over 200 Grams. They all pleaded not guilty to the charges. Sosa and Ceballos-Rosario were each held on $500,000 cash bail. They are due back in Lynn District Court on April 19 for a probable cause hearing.

Pena was ordered held on $500,000 cash bail at a bail hearing in Lynn District Court this morning. She is also due back in court on April 19 for a probable cause hearing along with the other defendants.

In December 2014, authorities from the State Police TDU began an investigation into an alleged drug trafficking operation on the North Shore that they believed was responsible for distributing heroin and cocaine to and within Massachusetts.

This investigation remains ongoing, according to the Attorney General's office.