Bath Salts Bust Nets Two Newark Men

Two city men were among 90 arrested nationwide Wednesday in “Operation Log Jam,” a crackdown on dealers and manufacturers of the synthetic drugs commonly known as bath salts, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York said in a statement.

US Attorney Preet Bharara said Thursday two 36-year-old Newark men, Guilo Bertoli and Anthony Capaccio, as well as a third man, John Messina, 48, of Brooklyn, were charged with conspiring to distribute the drug, which experts say has especially dangerous side effects.

Authorities say the men distributed bath salts through a company, “SmokeClear Inc.," which allegedly shipped the drug from a warehouse in Newark owned by Cappaccio and Bertoli. SmokeClear had been under investigation by the US Drug Enforcement Agency since May.

Each faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.