Acting Attorney General Robert Lougy announced that a man was sentenced to state prison today as a result of an undercover investigation into the distribution of methamphetamine and heroin in Burlington and Ocean counties.
“Operation Speed Racer” was led by the New Jersey State Police, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice, with assistance from the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office, Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office and Ewing Township Police Department.
Elias Corona-Sanchez, 32, of North Hanover, aka “Peligro,” was sentenced to 10 years in state prison by Superior Court Judge Wendel E. Daniels in Ocean County.
He pleaded guilty on Jan. 11 to a charge of first-degree distribution of heroin. He and three other men were charged in an indictment obtained by the Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau on Dec. 5, 2014.
The co-defendants were sentenced by Judge Daniels on April 15: Guadalupe Madrigal-Mejia, 37, of New Egypt, aka “Lupe,” was sentenced to 10 years in prison on a charge of first-degree distribution of heroin; Juan Mendez, 48, of New Egypt, was sentenced to six years in prison on a charge of second-degree possession of heroin with intent to distribute; and Antonio Esqueda, 35, of New Egypt, was sentenced to three years in prison on a charge of third-degree possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.
A fifth defendant in the investigation, Juan Gutierrez-Valencia, 26, of Pemberton Township, was indicted separately and pleaded guilty to first-degree possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun and fourth-degree obstructing the administration of law. He struck and injured two state troopers with a car while trying to flee from the State Police during a drug transaction in Mount Laurel in July 2014. A third state trooper fired at him, grazing his arm.
The gun charge related to a stolen 9mm handgun seized from his car when he was arrested. He was sentenced on May 13 to 10 years in state prison, including 3 ½ years of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Terrence R. Cook in Burlington County.
Deputy Attorney General Julia S. Glass prosecuted the defendants in the drug case for the Division of Criminal Justice. Detective Sgt. Erik Hoffman was case agent for the State Police Intelligence Section, Violent and Organized Crime Control Bureau South, Crime Suppression South Unit. He coordinated the investigation with agents of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration supervised by Special Agent in Charge Carl J. Kotowski of the DEA’s New Jersey Division.
Gutierrez-Valencia was arrested on July 7, 2014 at a hotel on Fellowship Road in Mount Laurel, where he met an undercover detective who had arranged to buy two kilograms of crystal meth from him. The undercover detective got into the vehicle driven by Gutierrez-Valencia, who showed him a black gym bag containing a large amount of methamphetamine. Once he saw the drugs, the detective got out of the car and signaled members of the State Police TEAMS Unit to arrest Gutierrez-Valencia. Gutierrez-Valencia tried to flee, striking and injuring the two state troopers.
Gutierrez-Valencia suffered a gunshot wound to his arm when one trooper fired at him. Investigators arrested him and executed a search warrant for the vehicle, seizing two kilos of methamphetamine and a stolen 9mm handgun.
The other four defendants were arrested on July 8, 2014, at the house where Madrigal-Mejia lived with Corona-Sanchez and Esqueda on Jacobstown Road in New Egypt.
The undercover detective had arranged to buy two kilograms of black tar heroin from Corona-Sanchez and Madrigal-Mejia at the house for a price of $65,000 per kilo. When Madrigal-Mejia and Corona-Sanchez showed the undercover detective the heroin, the detective signaled members of the State Police TEAMS Unit to make arrests and execute a search warrant at the house. Mendez, who had supplied the two kilograms of heroin, was arrested in a vehicle outside the house.
Esqueda was arrested in his bedroom, where investigators found a quantity of cocaine. Other quantities of cocaine, some packaged for distribution, were discovered in the kitchen and in hall closets. A digital scale, a heat sealer and packaging materials were found by investigators in common areas of the house.
Madrigal-Mejia and Corona-Sanchez also were charged in connection with an undercover purchase of one-half kilogram of crystal meth that the undercover detective made on May 2, 2014 outside a convenience store on Route 130 in Florence.
The drugs were delivered to the detective by an unnamed co-conspirator, who delivered the purchase price of $15,000 to Madrigal-Mejia and Corona-Sanchez, who were parked nearby.