A busted up Bronx heroin mill sold its poison under dozens of brand names, movie titles and fashion labels, authorities said Thursday.
The distribution operation — run out of a fifth-floor apartment in Morris Heights — was breaking down 18 kilos for sale Wednesday when cops and DEA agents shut it down and arrested five people, authorities said.
The drugs were packaged under names like “Versace,” “NY Yankees,” “Avatar,” “007” — and “HIV.”
They would have sold for nearly $4 million on the street, said officials in Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan’s office.
“Criminal organizations such as this one continue to spread death and tragedy throughout our area” she said.
A joint NYPD-DEA task force found out about the operation Wednesday, while they were doing surveillance on an apartment building on Nelson Ave. and Brandt Pl. as part of a larger probe, authorities said.
At about 11:30 a.m., a man toting a grey backpack got into a black Jeep, and drove to the Cross County Shopping Center in Yonkers, where he met Cheyenne Baker, 20, and Marvin Rosa, both of Lebanon, Pa.
Agents arrested the duo and seized the backpack, which held 10,000 single-dose heroin envelopes, stamped “7Up,” authorities said. The haul totaled about a kilo and a half.
Investigators believe that the shopping center is a hotbed for drug deals, because it’s so close to the Bronx and Interstate 87, law enforcement sources said.
The task force members kept watching the building, and at about 5:40 p.m., saw Luis Amador, 28, leave with an orange bag.
They went inside, and saw two more men, Jose Genao, 23, and Carlos Soto, 32, trying to shut the apartment door — the heroin mill still visible from the hallway.
Two people jumped out of the window and ran down the fire escape, and the task force busted Amador, Genao and Soto.
Agents and cops found another 16 kilos in the apartment — six of which were already packaged for sale.
The drugs were packaged for sale to mid-level dealers in and outside the city, sources said.
“Opioid traffickers are infiltrating neighborhoods where hard-working New Yorkers are raising families,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge James Hunt.
“Not only are these traffickers bringing crime and temptation to New Yorkers’ doorsteps, but they are fueling opioid addiction throughout the Northeast.”
All five suspects face arraignment in Manhattan criminal court Thursday night.