February 17, 2017

Contact: Sheriff Armando Fontoura (973) 621-4105

Newark – For the second day in a row Essex County sheriff’s detectives arrested a suspected drug dealer who was operating on the premises of the Stephen Crane Village public housing complex.

Sheriff Armando Fontoura stated that in response to continuous neighborhood complaints of open-air drug trafficking at the housing complex officers from his department’s Bureau of Narcotics staged a plainclothes surveillance operation in the vicinity of Building #7, located at 946 Franklin Avenue, on Thursday afternoon.

“Here, a suspect, later identified as Charlvester Anthony, 22 of Newark, was observed loitering in the area,” Sheriff Fontoura said.  “He was soon approached on foot by Alis Ortiz, 41 of Newark, and after a brief conversation between the suspects Anthony exchanged items from his waistband with Ortiz for cash.”

The sheriff’s BON detectives followed Ortiz and detained him for questioning a few blocks away from the scene where Ortiz admitted to having just purchased two heroin-filled glassine envelops, stamped “CALL OF DUTY” in green ink.

“Our officers then moved in to further investigate Anthony,” Fontoura noted.  “He was found to be in possession of 88 similarly marked decks of heroin, 11 zip-lock bags of ‘crack’ cocaine and $159 in cash, all of which were seized and Anthony was placed under arrest.”

Anthony was charged with 10 criminal counts for the sale, possession and distribution of controlled dangerous substances.

Ortiz was charged with one count of possession of CDS and he was found to be the subject of an open warrant issued by the Madison municipal court.

The Essex County Prosecutor’s Screening Unit approved all the charges and Anthony and Ortiz were lodged at the county jail where they await a bail hearing.