A Latino drug connection is a drug dealers dream. Cocaine was smuggled from Puetro Rico into Jacksonville, Florida on multiple occasions. But in late February 2021 several suspects were arrested in a drug bust involving several kilograms of cocaine, guns, and $130,000 in cash.
The arrested are Edgar Yandell Ortiz Lopez, 28, Yaddiel Jesus Ortiz Lopez, 24, and Cassidy Eduard Martinez-Iglesias, 28. The suspects are accused of trafficking cocaine into Jacksonville, Florida from Puerto Rico.
Investigative efforts revealed that in January 2021, the suspects received a package from Puerto Rico that contained a teddy bear stuffed with two kilograms of cocaine and a tracking device. It was learned that in return they shipped a package with a large sum of money to Puerto Rico.
Investigators found multiple locations, including private residences and a business around Jacksonville, Florida where shipments were delivered. Narcotics detectives, postal inspectors and a drug detection canine from the Florida Highway Patrol found a third package delivered on February 23, 2021 containing a cocaine-filled teddy bear.
In February 2021, another box with a teddy bear stuffed with cocaine was intercepted. On February 26, 2021 all three suspects were arrested and search warrants were served. Detectives seized five kilograms of cocaine, four firearms, one BMW, and more than $130,000 in cash.
All three suspects have been charged with trafficking in cocaine and conspiring with another to traffic in cocaine. Martinez-Iglesias has also been charged with four counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
