Montauk residents charged with trafficking drugs from Dominican Republic to the East End, officials say

Suffolk County prosecutors and law enforcement charged four Montauk residents with trafficking cocaine and fentanyl, which were later sold at Montauk bars last summer, officials said.

The East End Task Force and the DEA served search warrants at four homes Wednesday, where authorities seized a combined 300 grams of cocaine and fentanyl shipped to New York City and Long Island through the mail from the Dominican Republic, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said at a news conference in Riverhead Friday.

Angel Garces-Diaz, 38, Anuedis Garces-Medrano, 35, Everado Hernandez, 45, and Yadaris Baez-Rivera, 26, all of Montauk, faced various charges of criminal possession and sale of a controlled substance.

Prosecutors said the undisclosed amount of fentanyl was enough to kill more than 1,000 people.

They were each arraigned Thursday on separate felony charges. Charges are being submitted to a grand jury for indictment, Tierney said.

None of the drugs sold have been tied to any fatal overdoses and is unrelated to other fatal drug sales on the East End, Tierney said. Federal authorities are working to identify the suppliers from the Dominican Republic, Tierney said.

Garces-Diaz was charged with eight counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance, one count of attempted criminal possession and one count of criminal possession of a controlled substance.

Garces-Medrano was charged with three counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance. Baez-Rivera was charged with one count of criminal sale of a controlled substance. Hernandez was charged with two counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance.

Attorneys for the four defendants could not be reached for comment.

Garces-Diaz and Garces-Medrano were ordered held without bail. Baez-Rivera and Hernandez were each released on their own recognizances because their charges were not bail eligible, Tierney said.

The investigation began in March, followed by a series of undercover buys of drugs from Garces Diaz and the three other defendants, Tierney said.

"Intelligence later established that Garces Diaz would frequently acquire cocaine via the mail from New York City or elsewhere for distribution in the Montauk area, particularly at local area bars," Tierney said.

During a search by police, Garces Diaz told police, “I went into the Bronx to pick up cocaine, but I did not sell it,” according to charging documents. “The cocaine was hidden in a secret compartment in my car.”

The task force including district attorney investigators, Suffolk County Police, the Suffolk Sheriff's office, East Hampton, Riverhead, Southold and Southampton police and the DEA seized more than $35,000 in cash, cocaine, fentanyl, a host of drug distribution paraphernalia, including digital scales, plastic bags and a kilo press to process fentanyl into pills, Tierney said. Police also recovered an unloaded 9mm handgun and ammunition.

Authorities fanned out cash for display unveiling the bust Friday at the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office.

Investigators seized evidence in the mail dating back to operating the drug ring since 2020, Tierney said. The Department of Homeland Security intercepted a package of cocaine from the Dominican Republic, with the drugs concealed in a metal cylinder addressed to a fake name and a different address.

He said there was no evidence any of the Montauk bars were involved or complicit in drug sales.

“Suffolk County leads the tristate area in opioid overdose deaths,” Tierney said. “This is unacceptable, and it is vitally important that we utilize all our resources and all of our law enforcement partners to stop the illegal drug trade and to dismantle these conspiracies — more importantly, to hold those responsible, those who are going to peddle poison in our communities, we will hold them responsible and we will send them to jail.”