A six-month investigation that dismantled a big narcotics organization in Florida resulted in the arrest of thirty-three people and the seizure of enough fentanyl to kill roughly a million people.
“This wasn’t just a few people selling drugs,” explained Sheriff Chad Chronister. “This was a network, a business built on death, addiction, and illegal profit.”
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) stated that the operation was the result of a six-month investigation conducted by the HCSO Major Violators Section in coordination with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in Orlando.
“Our joint success in dismantling this network is further proof of how our existing partnerships are strengthened and effective with help from the S.A.F.E. grant program,” FDLE Tampa Bay Special Agent in Charge Mark Brutnell stated.
Authorities claimed they learned the narcotics gang had direct connections to a network in Puerto Rico that smuggled fentanyl and cocaine into Florida, especially through Orlando. From there, the drugs were dispersed throughout Hillsborough County and the surrounding areas.
According to HCSO, the major figures in the operation are two brothers: Fernando Elias Rosario Torres, 32, who is presently spending time at Federal Prison Camp Pensacola, and Elias Xavier Rosario Torres, 26, who is being held at Graceville Correctional Facility. They were discovered to be coordinating drug distribution in Hillsborough County using illegal telephones smuggled into their facilities.
The inquiry also found that their parents, Elias Rosario Negron, 59, and Enid Torres Berrios, 59, were active participants in the drug trade, prompting their arrests as well.
The HCSO reported that the operation resulted in the capture of 33 individuals. The majority of them face substantial drug trafficking accusations, including fentanyl, cocaine, or methamphetamine. Additionally, 11 people are facing RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) charges.
Detectives reported seizing around two kilograms of fentanyl, which might have averted 931,000 overdose deaths, as well as two kilos of cocaine and eight ounces of methamphetamine. Authorities also seized two fentanyl presses used to produce counterfeit pills, five guns, and $11,257 in cash.