MONTICELLO, NY — Sullivan County officials executed nine search warrants on June 8 and arrested 26 Sullivan County residents who police allege were involved in a large drug network.  The year-long investigation began with the New York State Police Community Narcotics Enforcement Team.

At a news conference in Monticello on June 11, State Police Captain Brian Shortall said every police agency in Sullivan County was ultimately assigned to the investigation, along with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.  Shortall said that 65 to 70 officers were involved in the operation as well as everyone in the Sullivan County District Attorney’s Office. He said the investigation is ongoing and more arrests are expected.

There were searches in the Town of Thompson and the Village of Monticello, but District Attorney Jim Farrell said one of the searches was located in Lake Huntington, two miles from where he lives.

 Farrell said officers “seized over $35,000 in cash, 400 grams of powdered cocaine, 100 grams of crack cocaine, about 120 bags of heroin, and assorted prescription drugs, one shotgun.”  He said serving search warrants on nine locations at the same time is an “enormous undertaking” and he thanked all of thee involved police deparments.

He also said violence goes hand in hand with this type of activity. He said,  “make no mistake about it, when individuals engage in this type of behavior as we allege, violence is surely very close. In this case one of the individuals who was targeted by this investigation is Paul Jones. In addition to being charged with conspiracy to distribute these narcotic drugs, Jones has also charged with robbery in the first degree, robbery in the second degree, assault in the first degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, and criminal use of a weapon in the first degree for the alleged robbery and assault of a man in the Village on Monticello in July 2017. We want to stop the flow of narcotics onto our streets, but we also want to stop the flow of violence that surely follows this type of behavior.

He said that his offices alleges that people who were arrested were making their livings through dealing drugs, and the arrests should have an impact on the supply of illicit drugs in the county.

Those arrested are:

Reynaldo Moises Sanchez

Edward Drayton

Jimmy Gonzalez

Sean Lundy

James Drayton

John Picarello II

Alex Grande

Jessica Gonzales

Daniel Ridley

Rebecca Sisco-Robinson

David Capicchioni

Phil Vereen

Donald Janik, Sr.

Sirvincent Paramore

Joshua Thompson

Philip Edwards

Rufus Hackett

Ebony Walker

Lissette Osorio

Florence Bolden

Treeiavante Jackson

Donal Janik, Jr.

Benrnett Vereen

Tyler Solomon

Christopher McBride

Paul Jones