21 area locals nabbed, 3 sought in statewide drug bust

By Andy Gardner

A 15-month drug investigation by police and prosecutors in five counties has resulted in indictments leading to the arrests of dozens of people, according to St. Lawrence County Undersheriff Brooks Bigwarfe.

Those picked up and charged from St. Lawrence County so far include:

Corrin A. Brown, 22, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy and third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Pamela S. Cole, 38, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy

Brandon D. Dority, 31, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy and two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Brandy L. Grenier, 36, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy and third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Jeffrey J. Kendall, 38, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy and second-degree, third-degree and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Matthew J. Pearson, 28, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy and two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Katelynn V. Perretta, 28, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy

Ryan C. Perretta, 28, Morristown, charged with second-degree conspiracy

Jennifer M. Ross, 34, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy

Tyler T. Scott, 34, Heuvelton, charged with second-degree conspiracy and second-degree, third-degree and seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Salean M. Simmons, 27, Ogdensburg, charged with second-degree conspiracy and two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Carl J. Davey, 48, Massena, charged with second-degree conspiracy and attempted third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Karen L. Hollis, 62, Massena, charged with second-degree conspiracy

Justin P. Love, 26, Massena, charged with two counts of second-degree conspiracy, two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and one count of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance

Cassondra L. Northrup, 35, Massena, charged with two counts of second-degree conspiracy

Matthew W. Stewart, 41, Massena, charged with second-degree conspiracy and attempted third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

William J. Ward, 45, Massena, charged with second-degree conspiracy

Hillary L. Gilson, 33, Canton, charged with second-degree conspiracy, two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and one count each of fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and attempted third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Michael K. Labaff, 33, Norfolk, charged with second-degree conspiracy and third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance

Joshua D. Martin, 40, Canton, charged with second-degree conspiracy and third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance

Raymond E. Provost, 49, Canton, charged with second-degree conspiracy

According to information from the office of state Attorney General Letitia James, “this investigation led to the recovery of approximately 4,700 bags of heroin and fentanyl, which had all been pre-packaged for easy distribution by the trafficking ring (with a street value estimated at approximately $140,000), and approximately 2 kilos of cocaine (with a street value estimated at more than $200,000).”

Her announcement said two drug rings were involved in the trade that led to the 15-month investigation that included covert surveillance and hundreds of hours of wiretaps, aimed at rooting out heroin, fentanyl, and cocaine dealers operating in St. Lawrence County, Oswego County, Oneida County, Onondaga County, and Jefferson County.

“We appreciate the professionalism and collaboration with the Office of the Attorney General and all of our law enforcement partners during this case,” St. Lawrence County Sheriff Kevin Wells said in a prepared statement from the AG’s office. “We look forward to future partnerships with Attorney General James as we continue to combat these problems that are plaguing St. Lawrence County and areas throughout New York. These takedowns serve the function of ensuring safety and security of our state.”

The arrests are the result of two Onondaga County indictments of 65 people charged with a variety of drug charges focusing on sales.

The sweep, dubbed “Operation Central City,” also involved police agencies in Onondaga, Oswego, Oneida and Jefferson counties. All the indictments were drawn in Onondaga County Court, Bigwarfe said, for federal charges involving sale of cocaine, heroin and other opiates, Bigwarfe said.

All the detainees arrested in St. Lawrence County were being transported down to Syracuse where they will be arraigned and held in jails in the Syracuse area.

The first indictment comprised 33 defendants who are accused of selling narcotics in Onondaga, St. Lawrence, and Jefferson Counties. As alleged in the indictment, Shondell Days of Syracuse provided narcotics to Hillary Gilson, Salean Simmons and numerous other St. Lawrence County drug dealers. Simmons also had several other narcotics sources besides Days, including Carlos Arroyo of Watertown, New York, and several from Jersey City, New Jersey.

The second indictment comprised 34 defendants, two of whom also appear on the first indictment. This indictment alleges that Abdullah Quaid, Adam Durham, and Louis Mike led a Syracuse-based narcotics distribution network that sold cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl to drug resellers in Onondaga, St. Lawrence, Jefferson, Oswego, and Oneida Counties.

The two indictments charge 65 individuals with crimes that include various counts of criminal sale and criminal possession of a controlled substance (class A, B, and C felonies), and conspiracy to commit those crimes.

Among the agencies involved locally were the St. Lawrence County Drug Task Force, the county sheriff’s office, the Canton Police Department, the Gouverneur Police Department, the Potsdam Police Department, the Massena Police Department, the Norfolk Police Department, the Ogdensburg City Police Department, the New York State Police and Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Border Patrol and the Border Enforcement Security Task Force.

The investigation was led by St. Lawrence County Detective Arthur Shattuck and OAG OCTF Special Investigator William Elsenbeck, with the assistance of OAG Legal Support Analyst Eric Taub, under the supervision of Supervising Investigator Thomas M. Wolf and Deputy Chief Eugene Black. The Attorney General’s Investigations Bureau is led by Acting Chief Investigator John Reidy.