State police seize 2 kilos of fentanyl on turnpike near New Stanton, charge 2 N.Y. men

Two New York men are in federal custody after state troopers this week allegedly found more than two kilos of fentanyl stashed in a secret compartment of an SUV on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Westmoreland County.

Federal magistrate Patricia Dodge on Wednesday found that there was probable cause for Juan Pimentel and Christopher DeLacruz to remain in custody pending formal detention hearings in federal court next week.

According to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh by the Department of Homeland Security, both men are charged with possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

Court documents said two state troopers on Tuesday pulled over a Subaru SUV with a temporary New Jersey license plate in the westbound lanes of the turnpike in Mt. Pleasant Township, just east of New Stanton. Officers said the SUV was following a truck too closely in bad weather.

Pimentel was the driver, court documents state. He gave troopers a driver’s license showing he lives in Brooklyn.

DeLacruz’s license had a Queens address, according to federal Homeland Security Agent Jason W. McGraw. Neither man had an age listed in federal court documents.

McGraw reported the pair told troopers they were traveling from New York “for a quick day trip to visit a friend in Pittsburgh and then returning to New York that evening.” Neither man could tell troopers where they were headed in Pittsburgh, reporting that they were following GPS instructions.

“DeLacruz exhibited particularly nervous behavior for a traffic stop, including trembling and fidgety hands,” McGraw wrote.

The Subaru was registered to an address in Ozone Park, N.Y.

Troopers said multiple cellphones were observed during the stop.

McGraw said Pimentel granted consent for a search. However, when Pimentel asked DeLacruz if there was anything in the vehicle, DeLacruz told him to be quiet, according to the court document.

Troopers found the contraband in a compartment that was built behind the rear seat in the trunk area, according to court documents.

Troopers said a record check showed the SUV had been in the Pittsburgh area five times since September, McGraw wrote.

The total amount of drugs seized was 1,575 bricks weighing about 2.36 kilograms, or more than five pounds. Initial tests on the seized substance at the barracks in Greensburg when the men were questioned verified it was fentanyl, according to court documents.

In 2015, troopers made a similar large heroin bust along the same stretch near New Stanton when they pulled over a vehicle and found about 1-1/2 kilos packaged into 2,000 bricks of heroin. Troopers estimated the value of the heroin in that case at about $1 million.

In July 2019, troopers said they discovered 3 pounds, 6 ounces of fentanyl hidden inside an SUV driven by a New York City man after they pulled over the 2019 Dodge Durango along the highway, also in Mt. Pleasant Township. Police said the contraband was found in a secret compartment behind the radio.