March 26, 2007

ICE agents seize cocaine worth over $12 million hidden in container
Multiple agencies partner to arrest two, seize almost 400 kilos of narcotics

Parsippany, N.J. - U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, along with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers, agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and law enforcement officials from the Morris County Sheriff's Office today announced the seizure of approximately 392 kilograms of cocaine that arrived in the United States hidden in a cargo container from the Dominican Republic.

Additionally, on March 23, 2007, two suspects were arrested after attempting to unload the narcotics from the container stored at a warehouse behind a residence on New Street in Parsippany, New Jersey. Franklin Franco, a 36 year-old resident of New York City, and Oswaldo Patricio Contreras-Pugo, a 31 year-old resident of New York City, were arrested and charged with possession with the intent to distribute a controlled dangerous substance, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841. The defendants appeared Monday in U.S. District Court, Newark, N.J. before U.S. Magistrate Patty Schwartz and were held without bail.

The cocaine, concealed within a shipment of spices, and estimated to have a street value in excess of $12 million, entered the United States through the Philadelphia seaport on March 8, 2007. CBP officers conducting a routine examination discovered the contraband hidden inside the walls of the container. The subsequent arrests were the result of an investigative operation that involved ICE agents in Philadelphia, New York, and Newark, as well as officials from DEA and the Morris County Sheriff's Office.

Combining information from the ICE Office of Intelligence, and the authorities and investigative strategies of the ICE Office of Investigations, ICE has seized more than 5,176,036 pounds of illegal narcotics since the agency was created on March 1, 2003. ICE encourages the reporting of suspicious criminal activity related to drugs or the smuggling of illegal aliens to call its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE. Investigators staff this hotline around the clock.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

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