A 60-year-old man was arrested following a joint investigation at a Bronx apartment where more than 26 pounds of cocaine and $3 million in cash was stored hidden in several pieces of furniture with secret compartments, according to law enforcement.
Juan Rondon was arrested late Wednesday afternoon following a two-month investigation by the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor, the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and other law enforcement bodies.
"A multi-million-dollar drug den looked like any ordinary apartment until our agents and investigators uncovered hidden compartments in various pieces of furniture filled with contraband," said DEA Special Agent in Charge Frank Tarentino. "It's what we see from high level drug trafficking organizations. And so his clientele is pure, pure quantity selling to wholesale distributors up in the Northeast, up in the Midwest and throughout the New York City area to five boroughs."
Earlier in the day, investigators were conducting surveillance at the apartment on Gates Place near Moshulu Parkway in the Norwood neighborhood and saw Rondon enter the building carrying a bag, then leave with the same bag a short time later. He later came back empty handed.
Just before 5 p.m., Rondon was seen coming out of the second-floor apartment once again, which is when investigators stopped him and found him to have cocaine on him, according to law enforcement. Agents then conducted a search of the apartment, finding several pieces of furniture that had been retrofitted with secret trap compartments.
Dressers, nightstands and a coffee table each had large hidden compartments that were stuffed with cash, investigators found. The money was wrapped in bundles and labeled with dates from the past several years, the special narcotics said.
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Inside the coffee table was about 12 kilograms of cocaine and some cash, while a hidden trap in a nightstand contained at least 10 luxury watches, including some made by Rolex and Cartier, according to investigators. But despite there being millions of dollars in cash, drugs and other items inside the apartment, there was no additional security for the unit.
"This investigation shows how lucrative the cocaine trafficking business can be. Over a span of years, an accused major trafficker apparently squirreled away more than $3 million, filling secret compartments inside furniture to the brim with bundles of cash wrapped together in rubber bands, expensive watches, and kilograms of cocaine," said Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan.
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Rondon was charged with operating as a major drug trafficker and ordered held without bail at his arraignment Thursday night. Rondon was previously deported in 2006. Attorney information for him was not immediately available.
