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Ten people arrested in drug ring bust

Print Posted by Mike Bello October 7, 2010 04:57 PM

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By L. Finch, Globe Correspondent

Authorities have arrested 10 men in connection with a drug ring that distributed methamphetamine and the “date rape” drug GHB in the greater Boston area, federal and state officials announced today.

The suspects, from Arizona, Connecticut, and Massachusetts, are charged with an array of federal and state drug violations, officials said. If convicted, they could face up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

“The activities of the men involved presented an ongoing threat to public safety,” Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said in a statement, “and it was imperative that we acted aggressively in order to disrupt this network that distributed dangerous drugs for too long in our neighborhoods.”

Authorities, who had been investigating the men since 2008 as part of a joint probe by the state attorney general and the US attorney's office in Boston, discovered methamphetamine and GHB, $45,000 in cash, a money counter, drug packaging materials, books on smuggling and other drug paraphernalia, while executing search warrants throughout the investigation, officials said.

The criminal enterprise involved “large amounts of money,” a spokesman for Coakley’s office said, but he would not give any further details.

“Criminal enterprises seeking to traffic these dangerous drugs into our communities should heed this warning," said Carmen M. Ortiz, US attorney for Massachusetts. We will continue to utilize all of the collective tools at our disposal to break the supply chain of these highly addictive drugs.”