Fentanyl, Cocaine Sold In Suffolk Bars; 4 Arrested: Prosecutors

MONTAUK, NY — Four people were arrested and charged Wednesday in relation to a massive drug trafficking takedown in Montauk, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said.

At a press conference Friday, Tierney said the four arrested were involved with trafficking drugs obtained from the Dominican Republic and New York City and selling them around Montauk, particularly at local bars.

All, he said, were arrested and charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance.

Angel Garces-Diaz was arrested and charged with one count of second-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, a felony; seven counts of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, a felony; one count of first-degree attempted criminal possession of a controlled substance, a felony; and one count of fifth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a felony, Tierney said.

Anuedis Garces=Medrano, 35, was arrested and charged with one count of second-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, a felony, and two counts of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, a felony, Tierney said.

Yadaris Baez-Rivera, 26, was arrested and charged with one court of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, a felony, Tierney said.

Everado Hernandez, 45, was arrested and charged with two counts of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, a felony, Tierney said.

Due to New York's existing bail laws, only Garces- Diaz is likely to be held on bail as he is the only one charged with a qualifying offense, Tierney said.

"That's significant, because these defendants were dealing felony weight cocaine and police recovered fentanyl packaged for retail sale," Tierney said. "These drugs kill. And under our bail law we can only ask for bail on one out of the four defendants. This needs to change."

New York is the only state in the country where a judge cannot consider the danger posed to the community by criminal activity when considering bail, Tierney said, adding, "That's unacceptable — and it needs to change."

According to Tierney, the investigation began in March, 2022 with the East End Drug Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration investigating; a series of undercover buys were secured from Garces-Diaz and the others, he said.

"Intelligence later established that Garces-Diaz would frequently acquire cocaine via the mail from the city or elsewhere for distribution in the Montauk area, particularly at local bars," Tierney said.

On Wednesday, search warrants were executed at the homes of each of the individuals charged, as well as at a storage facility, Tierney said. Law enforcement found more than $35,000 in cash, felony quantities of cocaine and fentanyl, a "host of" drug distribution paraphernalia, including digital scales, plastic bags, and a kilo press — and an unloaded 9 mm handgun, Tierney said.

The quantity of fentanyl recovered was sufficient to kill over1,000 people, Tierney said.

Tierney said there is evidence of one instance of drugs secreted through the mail to Montauk from the Dominican Republic in 2020; since then more than 300 grams of cocaine have been seized, with the amount of fentanyl still to be determined, Tierney said. How it's done, he added, is that the drugs are sent to a fictitious name and a person then picks up the drugs; in this instance, Garces-Diaz picked up the drugs, he said.

"The message from this case is simple: If you traffic these drugs anywhere in Suffolk County, from Babylon to Montauk, we will prosecute you."

Tierney said the East End Drug Task Force has been bolstered with more than a 40 percent increase in staffing since he took office. "Suffolk County leads the tri-state area in opioid overdose deaths," he said. It's vitally important to utilize resources and dismantle conspiracies, as well as hold those responsible accountable, Tierney said.

While the drugs were sold in various nightspots, Tierney said there is no evidence that any of those Montauk businesses were complicit in those sales.

When asked why so much drug activity has been traced to Montauk, Tierney said: "It says we have an opioid overdose epidemic in Suffolk County and law enforcement has to be vigilant in preventing this from happening, as well as holding those responsible and sending them to jail."

Tierney said law enforcement is working with federal partners to explore the Dominican Republic connection and said additional arrests could be forthcoming as the investigation continues.

"This narcotics investigation was a tremendous team effort, and we would like to thank all our partner agencies. Federal, state and county support is critical in any large scale investigation like this, and the district attorney's task force coordinating these resources was instrumental," said East Hampton Town Police Chief Michael Sarlo.

He added: "Our patrol and detective divisions are to be commended for the tremendous effort they have put into intelligence gathering and development of investigative leads. The patience and diligence in their coordinated efforts have led to taking large quantities of narcotics and distributors of these dangerous drugs off our streets, and making our community safer. The potential of fentanyl tainted narcotics has created an exponential threat of overdose danger, and made these cases even more critical in our mission to protect the township. "

Garces-Diaz and Garces-Medrano are due back in court on October 12. Garces-Diaz is
being represented by Robert Connolly. Garces-Medrano is being represented by Edward Burke.
Baez-Rivera and Hernandez are due back in court on October 27. They are both being
represented by the Legal Aid Society, Tierney said.