A suspect has been arrested in Bensonhurst for possession of 410 glassines of heroin, over 100 plastic bags of crack, one plastic bag of marijuana and a gun.
Staten Island resident Steven Lopez, 23, was arrested and charged with criminal possession of a weapon, criminal possession of marijuana and criminal possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell.
Police officers from the 62nd Precinct, in an unmarked car and plain clothes, were on anti-crime patrol near 71st Street and 19th Avenue on Wednesday, March 11 at 6:45 p.m. and were about to issue a ticket to Lopez who had his car double-parked. However, when they approached the car, he sped off.
Their suspicions aroused, the officers followed and stopped the vehicle. Smelling marijuana while approaching the suspect, officers placed Lopez under arrest. While searching him, they then found three plastic bags that contained cocaine in his pockets.
Lopez and his vehicle were then removed to the 62nd Precinct station for processing.
While the auto was off, officers noticed a vibrating sound from a loose piece of plastic in the console. After further searching, they saw several plastic bags behind it. After the discovery, the officers then applied for and were granted a search warrant for Lopez’s car.
When the plastic piece was removed, it revealed a hollowed area where the officers found money, marijuana, heroin, crack and a loaded .45 caliber Llama semi-automatic handgun.
In total, 410 glassines of heroin, 131 bags of crack, one bag of marijuana, two cell phones, the gun, four rounds of .45 caliber hollow point ammunition, two rounds of .45 caliber ammunition, a magazine for the gun and $977 were recovered.