http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=local&id=5098545
Feds in NJ seize $11M worth of drugs in bust
Eyewitness News Exclusive
(New Jersey - WABC, March 6, 2007) - Federal agents in New Jersey seized
$11
million dollars worth of drugs in a huge drug bust on Tuesday night.
Authorities say that included hundreds of pounds of cocaine -- the biggest
bust in 10 years -- and 75 pounds of crystal meth, the biggest crystal
meth
bust ever in New Jersey.
The drugs came from Mexico and were brought to our area by at least four
people.
Eyewitness News re****ter Lucy Yang has the story from Newark.
When federal agents pounced on a vehicle that pulled into a McDonald's
parking lot, they scored big. We're told this is the largest seizure in
New
Jersey of crystal meth, stuffed into duffel bags and ready to be sold.
And as you're about to read in our exclusive re****t, that's not all they
hauled in.
Seventy five pounds of crystal meth were found, a three million dollar
price
tag on the street. But thanks to the Drug Enforcement Agency, those drugs
will never make its way to New York clubs and into the hands of the
vulnerable.
"It's a wake up call for our state and this region that meth use may rise
.... we have to be concerned about this," said DEA official Gerard
McAleer.
In addition to the crystal meth, the feds confiscated more than 400
pounds/$8 million dollars worth of cocaine.
Authorities say four people drove the drugs from Mexico to northern
Jersey.
We're told 55-year-old Anthony Zassa of Tucson, his 57-year-old brother
Rocco Zassa, 29-year-old Adriana Ferns and 26-year-old Casey Root.
Officials say that not only was Anthony in charge of trans****tation, his
day
job in Arizona was state director of Vision Quest -- a youth
rehabilitation
place.
"So here's someone who's pledged their life's work to helping young people
get on the straight and narrow," McAleer said.
And to keep it all in the family, we're told brother Rocco was a counselor
there as well.
The seizure may be notable, but just to give you a sense of how big the
drug
appetite is, this will probably last a month. That means by April there
may
be another team of mules driving another mountain of poison to the area.
Officials say their next hurdle is to find the source in Mexico where 80
percent of crystal meth is produced.
|
