6 charged in Bucks County drug bust after officials find meth, cocaine hidden in Bluetooth speakers
BUCKS COUNTY, Pa. (CBS) -- Four men from Pennsylvania have been charged for allegedly trafficking millions of dollars worth of methamphetamine and cocaine from California to Bucks County by hiding the drugs in Bluetooth karaoke speakers, the district attorney's office said.
According to the Bucks County DA's office, investigators busted the cross-country drug ring after narcotics detectives tracked a dozen shipments to locations in Bristol Township and Montgomery County, each containing hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of illegal drugs.
Three shipments were also intercepted by postal officials in Kentucky, who found nearly $1.2 million worth of cocaine and meth inside three Bluetooth speakers, the DA's office said.
In the past six months, District Attorney Jennifer Schorn said about $5 million worth of drugs were transported from California to Pennsylvania as part of the trafficking scheme.
Matthew Byrne, of Broomall, Delaware County, is accused of running the trafficking organization and making monthly trips to California to buy drugs and arrange the shipments.
Byrne, his brother Joseph Byrne, Khalik Kemp, of Philadelphia, and Christian Garwood, of Flourtown, Montgomery County, were all arraigned on Monday, Aug. 5 and committed to the Bucks County Correctional Facility, the DA's office said.
The four Pennsylvania men, as well as two men from California who are not yet in custody, are facing a myriad of charges, including possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance, conspiracy to commit possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and criminal use of a communication facility.
"This case shows there are no limits to the lengths traffickers will go to make a profit dealing poisons that devastate families and communities," Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry said. "This multimillion-dollar network involved monthly cross-country trips to California where buys were made, and shipments were arranged back to the Commonwealth. Great collaboration by law enforcement partners interrupted this sophisticated organization and closed a cocaine and methamphetamine pipeline."
The investigation, which involved numerous federal and local law enforcement agencies and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, remains active and ongoing, according to Schorn's office.