Major drug bust nets 30 suspects

205-count indictment unsealed Tuesday in Saratoga County Court

BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. >> Thirty people have been charged for their alleged involvement in an Albany-based drug trafficking ring that targeted distribution in Saratoga and Warren counties, and elsewhere in the Capital Region.

The 205-count indictment unsealed Tuesday in Saratoga County Court charges the defendants with different crimes in relation to their involvement in the operation, which included cocaine, heroin, and illegal prescription medication.

The charges, resulting from a 13-month multiagency investigation, are for alleged criminal sale and criminal possession of a controlled substance and second-degree conspiracy, all felonies. The defendants are: • Robert Allen, 49, of Queensbury. • Jessica Baker, 37, of South Glens Falls. • Tara Brown, 45 years, of Queensbury. • Colleen Connolly, also known as Colleen Syman, 45, Lake Luzerne. • Angela Cox, 41, of Schenectady. • Rashaun Creel, also known as “Broadway,” 36, of Schenectady. • James Duprey, 52, Queensbury. • Shane Frasier, Shane, 44, of Glens Falls. • Vanessa French, 49, of Glens Falls. • Vanessa Graham, 36, of Gansevoort. • Melvina “Mel” Grovenburg, 49, of Glens Falls. • Steven Lathrop, 35, of Hudson Falls. • Donald Layman, 72, of Glens Falls. • Edward “Eddie” Lee, Edward, 45, of Glens Falls.

• Matthew “J” Malu, 30, of Albany.

• Jamel Miller, 38, of Schenectady.

• Elizabeth Monahan, 24, of Hudson Falls.

• Jessica Nichols, 37, of Fort Edward.

• Patrick O’Keefe, 42, of Queensbury.

• Renee Passino, 31, of South Glens Falls.

• Jamel “James” Pearson, 21, of Albany.

• Brenda Perry, 49, of Glens Falls.

• Hardley Pierre, 29, of Schenectady.

• Tara Reid, 35, of Queensbury.

• Tremel “Skinny” Rosario, 36, of Albany.

• Laura Russo, 50, of Schenectady.

• Mana “Mike” Sambola, 36, of South Glens Falls.

• Kimberly Schwartfigure, 42, of Glens Falls.

• Mark “Juan” Tai, 31, of Schenectady.

• Nicholas Torchetti, 47, of Queensbury.

It’s alleged that Rosario and Malu, based in Albany, partnered to set up a cocaine distribution operation in Saratoga and Warren Counties and across the Capital Region. Rosario and Malu were captured over wiretaps as they allegedly set up shop, using “workers” to peddle their cocaine, heroin, and illegal prescription drugs, and running additional drugs up from Albany themselves or via a hired drug “mule” whenever the “workers” were running low on product.

The investigation, codenamed Operation “Off Broadway,” involved state and local law enforcement agents led by the New York State Attorney General’s Organized Crime Task Force, in partnership with Schenectady, Warren and Saratoga counties’ sheriff’s offices, the Albany, Glens Falls and Watervliet city police departments, the United States Office of Probation and Pre-Trial Services, and the New York National Guard Counterdrug Task Force.

“As we allege, this trafficking ring flooded the Capital Region with cocaine and other drugs — fueling the addiction cycle that has ravaged communities across our state,” Attorney General Barbara Underwood said. “We will continue to work with our partners in law enforcement to cut off the flow of opioids and other drugs into our communities and drive traffickers like these out of business, part of our multi-levered approach to tackling New York’s evolving epidemic.”