Troopers seize heroin cocaine and $24000 during I 684 traffic stop
Southeast, NY – A routine highway patrol along Interstate 684 turned into a major narcotics bust Tuesday afternoon when state troopers uncovered a hidden compartment packed with heroin cocaine and cash inside a vehicle traveling through Putnam County.
The stop occurred around 12:55 p.m. in the Town of Southeast, where members of the Troop K Community Stabilization Unit assigned to the District Attorney’s Safer Highway Initiative observed a northbound vehicle violating New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law.
The driver, identified as Manuel De Jesus Genao Gutierrez, 38, of Queens, was the sole occupant of the vehicle.
Troopers said Gutierrez granted consent to search the vehicle. During the search, officers discovered a hidden compartment. State Police K-9 Vinn conducted an exterior scan of the vehicle and alerted to the presence of narcotics.
Investigators recovered more than 1,800 glassine envelopes containing approximately 58.1 grams of heroin. Troopers also located a vacuum-sealed plastic bag and multiple glass containers holding approximately 128.2 grams of cocaine, along with about $24,000 in cash.
Gutierrez was arrested and charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the second degree, two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree with intent to sell, criminal possession of a controlled substance, and aggravated unlicensed operation in the second degree.
He was arraigned in the Town of Carmel Court and remanded to the Putnam County Jail.
Key Points
- Troopers seized heroin cocaine and $24,000 during a traffic stop on Interstate 684
- More than 1,800 glassine envelopes of heroin were found in a hidden compartment
- The Queens driver faces multiple felony drug charges
