Police arrest 16 in Keyport drug raid

BY VINCE ECHAVARIA
Staff Writer

BY VINCE ECHAVARIA
Staff Writer

KEYPORT — Sixteen area residents were arrested in the borough Jan. 23 and charged with various drug violations in a drug raid led by the Bayshore Narcotic Task Force.

Brian Theodoreopolos, 24, of Arlington Court, Holmdel, was arrested after a motor vehicle stop Jan. 23 and charged with possession of cocaine, possession with intent to distribute and possession in a park zone. He is being held on $125,000 bail in the Monmouth County jail, Freehold Township.

Theodoreopolos allegedly had more than two ounces of packaged crack cocaine in his possession and one ounce of powdered cocaine, according to police.

Borough police Lt. Thomas Mitchell said 12 police officers from the task force and Keyport were involved in the raid, which was lead by Detective Sgt. Jack Mullins, head of the task force. "It was an ongoing investigation that was taken care of on that day," Mitchell said.

The operation started at 4 p.m. and was called "2 to 10" because of the hours the suspect allegedly distributed drugs, according to a Keyport police press release.

As a result of a police investigation, 14 alleged customers of Theodoreopolos were arrested. Most of the arrests took place on borough streets, with many of the alleged customers coming to the Keyport Police Department throughout the night, Mitchell said.

"The amount of arrests was a little overwhelming," Mitchell said.

Theodoreopolos is suspected of supplying illegal drugs to the Bayshore area, Mitchell said. Eight motor vehicles and $1,500 in cash were also seized in the operation.

The 14 alleged customers of the suspect were all charged with conspiring to possess cocaine. The 14 suspects released after processing include Cindy Emslie, 43, Shore Haven Road, Hazlet; Carlos Losado, 28, Union Avenue, Union Beach; Steven Panizzi, 39, Windermere Avenue, Interlaken; Jean Marie Malanga, 32, Prospect Avenue, Union Beach; Patricia Erickson, 34, Village Green Way, Hazlet, who was also charged with possession of marijuana; Michael Burns, 24, Tindall Road, Middletown; William Pastorek, 33, Grace Avenue, Port Monmouth; Michael Crane, 45, Forest Avenue, Keansburg; Kevin Hubbard, 34, Atlantic Avenue, Matawan; David Bracey, 36, Roland Place, Hazlet; Mahaki Burns, 25, Tindall Road, Middletown; Baibi Berzina, 23, Grove Place, Keansburg; Vicki Peduto, 47, Broadway, Keyport; and James Baker, 38, Maple Place, Keyport.

Frank Lelinko, 36, of Lincoln Avenue, Laurence Harbor, was arrested and charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, and released after processing. Lelinko’s arrest was unrelated to the task force investigation, Mitchell said.