A five-month investigation by Morris County authorities has led to the arrest of 17 Morristown residents suspected of violent crimes, gang activity and drug dealing, including an alleged heroin distribution ring on Flagler Street.
The probe was launched “based upon criminal information that revealed an increase in violence related to gang activities and open-air drug dealing” in parts of the county, according to a statement from Acting Prosecutor Fredric Knapp on Wednesday.
Investigators from the Prosecutor’s Office were assisted by police from Morristown, Florham Park, Roxbury, Mount Olive and the New Jersey State Police, who have jurisdiction over Victory Gardens.
Twenty-two people were charged for alleged illegal activities in residential areas of Morristown, Dover, Victory Gardens and Wharton, according to the Prosecutor.
Nineteen of them have prior arrests or convictions for violent crimes; nine have been classified by authorities as gang members and 10 more are identified as gang associates.
Photos released by the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office:
The Morristown individuals arrested include:
Jermel Pledger, 36, who was arrested in April and charged with aggravated assault, burglary with a deadly weapon, burglary while causing bodily injury and aggravated assault, among other charges, in connection with an alleged stabbing in Victory Gardens on July 29, 2012. Authorities describe him as a violent offender.
A stakeout of “known street gang members” at a Flagler Street apartment in April 2013 led to arrests of four Morristown individuals classified as violent offenders; one of them, Jhana Wilfong, 37, had an outstanding warrant for violating his probation, according to authorities.
Wilfong; Frederick Lyle, 35; Keith Harrington, 33; and Sherea Williams, 36, face an assortment of drug charges.
In May, the task force arrested five people suspected of involvement in a heroin distribution operation at a Flagler Street apartment building.
They are: Dwayne Wright Sr., 47; Lorena Montes-Inestroza, 53; Quason Shabazz, 48; Lamont Walker, 50; and Michael Cummings, 55. The latter three have been described as violent offenders by authorities. They face assorted drug charges.
Two men were arrested at a Morristown home on June 28 for alleged drug distribution.
Darryl Hester, 51, and Henry Jackson, 47, both classified as violent offenders, face drug charges.
In July, several individuals were arrested on charges relating to alleged cocaine dealing in Morristown, Dover and Wharton.
They included Rashaun Brown, 36; and Sean Bowman, 38; both listed as violent offenders.
Another man on that list, Tyrone Wilfong, 34, was arrested in July for his alleged failure to appear at his sentencing for aggravated assault on a police and resisting arrest, among other charges.
On Tuesday, authorities were back at Flagler Street pursuing a narcotics investigation. This time they arrested two more suspects described as violent offenders, William Riley, 41, and Duvail Johnson, 33. Riley was picked up on a “no bail” warrant; Johnson was charged with nine heroin- and cocaine-related offenses.
