580 Pounds of Cocaine Seized in New York

Authorities seized 266kg of cocaine worth an estimated $10 million from a Long Island City storage facility and arrested a man.

Law enforcement authorities have seized more than 580 pounds of cocaine from a self-storage facility in Long Island City, New York, in what prosecutors described as the largest single cocaine cache seized by their office in two decades.

The operation resulted in the arrest of Nelson Salcedo, who was later arraigned in Manhattan Criminal Court.

The seizure was announced on August 28 by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), New York City’s Special Narcotics Prosecutor, the NYPD and other law enforcement agencies.

Investigators recovered approximately 266 kilograms (more than 580 pounds) of cocaine from 19 cardboard boxes. The drugs were divided among approximately 230 brick-shaped packages. Officers found 147 packages inside 12 boxes that had been loaded into a Nissan van, while another 83 packages were recovered from seven boxes left on the ground near the vehicle.

Some of the packages contained multiple kilograms of suspected cocaine. Field tests returned positive results for cocaine, although laboratory analysis by the NYPD was still pending when the DEA issued its announcement. Authorities estimated the seized cocaine had a street value of approximately $10 million.

The seizure followed a two-week investigation into what authorities described as a high-level cocaine trafficking organization. Beginning August 12, investigators twice observed Salcedo allegedly delivering weighted cardboard boxes to another person in Manhattan, near the northern end of Central Park.

Both alleged deliveries took place on Wednesday evenings, with Salcedo using a Nissan van. Investigators anticipated another delivery the following week and established surveillance on the vehicle. On August 26, they followed Salcedo to a self-storage facility at 41-02 Northern Boulevard in Long Island City.

At approximately 4:20 p.m., investigators allegedly watched him make two trips into the facility, returning with cardboard boxes each time. After officers saw Salcedo loading some of the boxes into the Nissan van, they approached and detained him.

Investigators allegedly found 12 boxes inside the van and another seven boxes on the ground nearby. Authorities secured the area and obtained a court-authorized search warrant.

A subsequent search uncovered the cocaine. The investigation is connected to an earlier case conducted with the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office. According to the DEA, the cocaine was allegedly destined for distribution in Manhattan and New Jersey. Authorities described the seizure as a major disruption to the regional narcotics supply chain.

New York City Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan said the seizure appeared to be the largest single cache of cocaine her office had recovered in 20 years. The NYPD also described the seizure as its largest cocaine bust in at least a decade.

A criminal complaint filed by the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor charges Salcedo with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the first and third degrees.

Another individual allegedly involved in the earlier Manhattan deliveries remains unapprehended. The investigation is continuing, with authorities working to identify other people connected to the trafficking organization.

The cocaine recovered during the operation will undergo further laboratory analysis.

Source: The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)