Burlington County man sentenced to 20 years in prison for heroin trafficking conspiracy in Trenton – MidJersey.News

June 14, 2024

TRENTON, NJ – A Burlington County, New Jersey man was sentenced to 245 months (20.4 years) in prison for his role in a drug trafficking conspiracy that distributed more than a kilogram of heroin in and around Trenton, said U.S. Attorney Philip R. The seller announced.

Jerome Roberts, aka “Righteous,” 53, was convicted in October 2021 of conspiracy to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin and distribution of 100 grams or more of heroin. Roberts was convicted following a three-week trial before then-Chief U.S. District Judge Freda L. Wolfson. U.S. District Judge Georgette Castner imposed the sentence June 13, 2024, in federal court in Trenton.

According to documents filed in the case and evidence at trial:

From October 2017 to October 2018, Roberts and others engaged in a large drug conspiracy that took place in the areas of Martin Luther King Boulevard, Sanford Street, Middle Rose Street, Southard, of Hoffman Avenue and Coolidge Avenue in Trenton, and who sought to profit from the distribution of heroin and numerous other controlled substances. Roberts and his co-conspirator Jakir Taylor regularly sourced hundreds of “bricks” of heroin from co-conspirator David Antonio, whom they called “Papi”. Communications intercepted through court-authorized wiretaps showed that Taylor and Roberts agreed to obtain from Antonio what Roberts called the “mother lode,” a supply of up to 1,500 bricks – about 1.5 kilogram of heroin – in a single delivery. Taylor said he intends to “flood the streets” of Trenton with this large offer. And Antonio said that “as long as…. . . As I continue, we will never stop. Evidence in this case also showed that Roberts personally distributed large quantities of heroin to others during the conspiracy. For example, law enforcement surveillance, intercepted communications, and other physical evidence showed that around August 10, 2018, Roberts obtained a supply of 200 bricks of heroin from Antonio, which he redistributed to Taylor and others. In coordinated arrests on October 25, 2018, law enforcement arrested Roberts, Taylor, Antonio and other defendants, and recovered more than 1.4 kilograms of heroin from Antonio's home.

United States Attorney Sellinger credited special agents of the FBI, Newark Division, Trenton Resident Agency, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge James E. Dennehy in Newark; special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Newark Field Division, Trenton Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Ross A. Marchetti; officers from the Trenton Police Department, under the direction of Interim Police Director Steve Wilson; officers from the Princeton Police Department, under the direction of Police Chief Nicholas Sutter; officers from the Ewing Police Department, under the direction of Police Chief John P. Stemler III; officers from the Burlington Township Police Department, under the direction of Police Director Bruce Painter; and detectives from the Burlington County Prosecutor's Office, under the direction of Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw, with the investigation leading to the sentencing.

He also thanked the officers of the New Jersey State Police, under the leadership of Superintendent Colonel Patrick J. Callahan; detectives from the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Angelo Onofri; officers of the Mercer County Sheriff's Office, under the direction of Sheriff John A. Kemler; and members of the New Jersey State Parole Board for their assistance in this matter.

The government is represented by Assistant United States Attorney Alexander Ramey of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Trenton.

Antonio pleaded guilty for his role and was sentenced in March 2020 to 204 months in prison. Taylor pleaded guilty for his role and was sentenced in January 2023 to 228 months in prison.

This case was conducted under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) and the FBI's Greater Trenton Safe Streets Task Force, a partnership between federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to improve the identification, apprehension and pursuit of individuals. involved in gang-related activity, violent crime and drug distribution in and around the greater Trenton area. The primary mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug trafficking, arms trafficking and money laundering organizations, as well as those primarily responsible for the country's supply of illegal drugs.

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Defense Counsel: Mark A. Berman Esq., Fair Lawn, New Jersey

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