Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele, Mercer County (N.J.) Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri and Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub announce the arrest of Sabree Burke, 30, of Huntington Valley in Montgomery County; Roderick McKinney, 24, of Trenton, N.J., and Stanley Akers, 21, of Hamilton, N.J., in New Jersey on charges related to heroin trafficking.
The arrests of the three defendants on Nov. 14, 2019, was the culmination of a multi-jurisdictional investigation into a heroin drug trafficking organization that spanned both states.
Burke’s organization operated in and around Hamilton Township and Trenton, N.J., and in Montgomery and Bucks Counties in Pennsylvania.
Officials say at the time of their arrests, all three defendants had a significant amount of heroin and cash on their person and in their residences.
Burke was in possession of 130 bricks of heroin (equal to 6,500 packets), a loaded .40 caliber Ruger with an obliterated serial number and $1,454 cash; McKinney was in possession of 71 bricks of heroin (equal to 3,550 packets) and $500 cash; and Akers was in possession of 50 bricks of heroin (equal to 2,500 packets) and $3,730 cash.
The heroin bricks, each stamped with “Louis Vuitton” in red lettering, were worth a combined street value of more than $100,000.
“Burke’s arrest and the arrest of two of his main lieutenants, Akers and McKinney, has cut off a significant source of heroin in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Central New Jersey,” said Steele.
“Law enforcement is committed to working together to investigate and dismantle drug trafficking operations like Burke’s.”
“This investigation represents the tremendous good that can be done when law enforcement from all levels come together to work as a team,” said Onofri. “We will continue to collaborate with our law enforcement partners to stem the flow of illegal drugs into our communities.”
The investigation was led by the Mercer County Narcotics Task Force, Montgomery County Detective Bureau’s Narcotics Enforcement Team (NET), and the
Bucks County Detectives’ Strike Force.
Also participating in this investigation were the Abington Township Police Department, Hamilton Township Police Division, Princeton Police Department, Trenton Police Department, DEA, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office Special Investigations Unit, Mercer County Sheriff’s Office and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department K-9.
Burke was charged with felony Possession with Intent to Deliver, Person Not to Possess a Firearm, Possession of a Firearm with an Altered Serial Number and related charges.
He was arraigned before Magisterial District Judge Christopher J. Cerski, who set bail at $500,000 cash. The defendant failed to make bail and was remanded to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility. A preliminary hearing was set for 2 p.m., Nov. 26, 2019, in front of Magisterial District Judge John D. Kessler. Montgomery County Assistant District Attorney Samantha Thompson, Captain of the Drug Unit, will prosecute the case against Burke.
McKinney and Akers were each charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance, possession with the intent to distribute and possession with the intent to distribute within 500 feet of a park. They are being held at the Mercer County Correction Center pending detention hearings on November 20, 2019. Mercer County Assistant Prosecutor Daniel A. Matos will prosecute the case against McKinney and Akers in Mercer County.