Police: Heroin Ring Sold Drugs On School Grounds On Staten Island
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A heroin dealing ring that allegedly sold drugs on Staten Island school grounds has been put out of business by police and prosecutors.
Five suspected dealers were arrested in the takedown by the NYPD and the Staten Island District Attorney's office, dubbed Operation Blue Angel.
Investigators said the drugs – heroin and fentanyl – were coming in from New Jersey. They used information obtained through the Staten Island Overdose Response Initiative, which found the heroin-dealing network while investigating the overdose death of a woman and her unborn baby, authorities said.
"Operation Blue Angel commenced as a result of the overdose death of a 25-year-old pregnant female named Sharissa Turk in January of 2016," said NYPD Deputy Chief Patrick Conway. "That's why we started targeting this organization."
Turk's fiancé – Frank DeGaetano, 28 – was charged in the case as a supplier. Also charged were Jessica Chaikin, 28 – who allegedly worked as a supplier trafficking heroin Edison Township, New Jersey to Staten Island; Amanda Dimarinis, 25 – an alleged dealer who works as a professional for I.S. 49 and allegedly sold fentanyl on school grounds on her lunch break; Amanda Gavrity, 25 -- an alleged distributor; and Dylan Lopez, 27 – an alleged dealer.
Police said they confiscated nearly 400 small bags of heroin in the sting. Most of them were found in DeGaetano's home, police said.
Investigators also confiscated cocaine, more than $11,000 in cash, and a scale, police said.