New Jersey State Police last week seized 3.2 tons of hydroponic marijuana and made two arrests during a commercial vehicle inspection at the Greenwich Township Weigh Station along Interstate 78, authorities said.
Ruben Rodriguez, 53, and Jose Santa Cruz Cheno, 59, both of Mexico, are facing first-degree possession with intent to distribute marijuana; second-degree conspiracy to distribute marijuana; and fourth-degree possession of marijuana charges.
The pair appeared Thursday for a detention hearing before Superior Court Judge H. Matthew Curry, sitting in Belvidere. Both are currently being held at Warren County jail and awaiting trial on the charges, Warren County Prosecutor Jim Pfeiffer said.
Attorney John McGuigan, public defender assigned to the case, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment. Attorney Celeste Duddy-Smith, the other public defender assigned to the case, declined comment Friday afternoon.
Pfeiffer said the incident began March 12 when the shipping manifest of a tractor trailer reflected the shipment of oranges and no other products. Rodriguez and Santa Cruz Cheno allegedly were traveling from Dinuba, California to Long Island City, New York. The pair were properly documented and legally in the country, Pfeiffer said.
A visual check by New Jersey State Police’s Mobile Safe Freight Unit showed pallets of oranges, as well as a dozen pallets of cardboard boxes, Pfeiffer said. The boxes, the prosecutor said, were not labeled and inconsistent with the packaging standards of produce. Cardboard boxes typically are considered “dry goods” and not used for produce, Pfeiffer said.
Rodriguez and Santa Cruz Cheno allegedly consented to a search of the rig.
Seized in the search were 3.2 tons, or 6,224 pounds, of hydroponic marijuana; 40 pounds of Delta 9A powder, which is a cannabis concentrate; 5,017 individual packages of cannabis products hidden in the cargo hold. All the products totaled 3.4 tons, or 6,485 pounds, with a street value of about $28.4 million, according to the prosecutor’s office.
If convicted, first-degree crimes carry a maximum prison sentence of 20 years in state prison, while second-degree crimes carry a maximum prison sentence of 10 years in state prison. Fourth-degree crimes have the potential to carry a maximum of sentence of 18 months in state prison.
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Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com.
