Woman Gets 7 Years For Meth Possession In South Jersey

ATLANTIC CITY – A Mexican drug trafficker was sentenced to seven years in state prison recently after authorities seized five pounds of crystal methamphetamine from her and a codefendant back in 2016, state Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said.

Sandra Y. Parra-Quintero, 28, of Hermosillo, Mexico, pleaded guilty last month to a charge of second-degree possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, after the Atlantic City Task Force and ICE Homeland Security arrested her after an investigation.

“The Atlantic City Task Force and its federal partners continue to investigate and prosecute drug traffickers bringing major supplies of narcotics into Atlantic City and its surrounding communities,” said Attorney General Grewal. “Methamphetamine destroys lives, and each time we take out a major supplier like this defendant, we make our communities safer.”

Her co-defendant, Eder M. Gonzalez, 28, of South Gate, CA, was sentenced on May 18 to 10 years in state prison after pleading guilty to first-degree possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute.

The partnering agencies learned that the two defendants were transporting a large quantity of methamphetamine and planned to deliver it to a Camden location on Aug. 9, 2016. Gonzalez and Parra-Quintero were under surveillance when they arrived in a Volkswagen Jetta with Mexican plates. Gonzalez used tools to disassemble the dashboard and remove nine packages wrapped in black duct tape. Law enforcement then arrested the two without incident.

The five pounds of crystal methamphetamine had a street value of $40,000.

The defendants were arrested in an investigation by the Atlantic City Task Force (ACTF) and ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Cherry Hill Office, assisted by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the New Jersey State Police TEAMS South Unit. The Atlantic City Task Force includes the Division of Criminal Justice, New Jersey State Police, State Parole Board, Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, Atlantic County Sheriff’s Office, Atlantic City Police Department, Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office, Little Egg Harbor Township Police Department, and Brigantine Police Department.

“Since its inception, the Atlantic City Task Force, in collaboration with HSI and ATF, has made hundreds of arrests, seized scores of guns, and taken large quantities of heroin, cocaine and meth off the streets of Atlantic City and nearby municipalities,” said Director Veronica Allende of the Division of Criminal Justice. “The task force is a great example of how you leverage law enforcement resources to target the offenders driving crime in the region.”

Photos: Courtesy of New Jersey Office of the Attorney General