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Involved gun running, carjacking, drug dealing, and fraudulent IDs

Two large-scale investigations in New Jersey have resulted in the arrest of 13 people for a string for crimes including the illegal sale of guns, drugs, fraudulent IDs and auto theft by car-jacking, the State Police announced Wednesday.

The probes, tagged Operation Southern Draw and Operation White Cloud, included the seizure of 17 guns. State, federal and local authorities teamed to conduct the investigations.

Operation Southern Draw, which began in August, uncovered a group of people making money through several different criminal enterprises, authorities said. The investigation showed a relationship between the sale of fraudulent identification documents, the sale of stolen cars, carjackings, and the purchase of firearms from North Carolina. The guns would then be sold for profit in New Jersey.

Six people were charged and 15 guns purchased and seized in the ongoing investigation.

Several carjackings planned in Essex and Union counties were actually thwarted by New Jersey troopers and agents from Homeland Security Investigations. In one effort, three men were detained by the State Police tactical unit when it was believed they were on their way to commit a carjacking in Roselle. Evidence recovered in the vehicle in which they were riding included an imitation handgun, a ski mask, and a tool to disable car locks.

Samuel Frye, 40 of Newark was charged with possession of burglary tools at that time and with additional charges later.

The arrests and search warrants were executed on April 4 when troopers, federal agents and police officers swept through a number of locations in Essex and Union. Thirteen handguns, one Uzi assault weapon and one 30/30 rifle were recovered along with two stolen cars and three other vehicles were seized. Several sets of fraudulent IDs, including birth certificates and social security cards were purchased under the direction of detectives prior to making the final arrests.

Operation White Cloud focused on the weapons and cocaine distribution network of Nicholas Stens of Collingswood, authorities said. In January, Stens sold a .40 caliber semi-automatic handgun and ammunition for $800 to an undercover officer in the task force. Later, the same officer purchased distribution quantities of cocaine and a 12-gauge shotgun from Stens.

In coordinated sweeps on Thursday, authorities executed search and arrest warrants in Camden and South Jersey. Seven people have been arrested on various weapons and drug charges to this date. The South Jersey case uncovered information that subjects under investigation intended to sell additional weapons including a AK-47, as well as significant quantities of drugs. One handgun, one shotgun, 22 ounces of cocaine valued at $22,000, $15,000 in currency, and two vehicles were seized in the course of this investigation.

Charged in Operation Southern Draw with Frye are: George Bresnihan, 47, of Roselle; Hady Venessa Purboo, 42, of Irvington; Kaseen Lawrence, 34, of Orange; Jeffrey Vandunk, 40, of Ridgeland, S.C., and Nixon Provillion, 39, of Irvington.

Charged in Operation White Cloud are: Nicholas Stens, 24, of Collingswood; Robert Schafer, 24, of Maple Shade; Roberto Ortiz, 25, of Haddon Township; Michael F. Neher, 26, of West Collingswood; Dominick M. Leonetti, Jr., 47, of Maple Shade, Charles Jackmon, 30, of Collingswood, and Eugene R. Wilson, 42, of National Park.

“Gun violence takes a heartbreaking toll on our communities, and in three out of four cases, the weapons used by criminals come from outside of New Jersey,” said Attorney General Paula T. Dow said. “By engaging all levels of law enforcement to target gun traffickers, we are working to shut down the pipeline for illicit guns.”

“These cases prove that law enforcement agencies at all levels are leveraging each other’s assets like never before. Collectively, we are targeting the people putting weapons in the hands of criminals,” Col. Rick Fuentes, State Police superintendent, said. “We are confident that these intercepted guns would have resulted in injuries and loss of life— perhaps to innocent bystanders—and we are rightfully proud of these successful investigations.”

“With these cooperative investigations, we set our sights on defendants who were selling both guns and narcotics, the twin scourges that are destroying so many young lives in New Jersey,” state Criminal Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor said.

In Operation Southern Draw, detectives with the State Police Weapons Trafficking Unit worked closely with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the state Division of Criminal Justice, the Union County Prosecutor’s Office, the Newark and Union Township police, the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, the state Motor Vehicle Commission, the state Department of Taxation, and the Salvation Army.

Operation White Cloud was conducted by the FBI/South Jersey Violent Offenders Gang Task Force-Cherry Hill Office, the State Police, the state Division of Criminal Justice, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, the Burlington, Gloucester and Camden county prosecutors’ offices, and the Voorhees Township, Maple Shade, Washington Township, Collingswood, and Gloucester Township police.

-TOM HESTER SR., NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM