Trio arrested with heroin, cash, weapon in Edison

By KATHY CHANG
Staff Writer

EDISON — An anonymous tip about potential illicit drug sales near the Robert Holmes Gardens, a public housing development, led to the arrest of three men last week and the seizure of 120 decks of heroin, a sawed-off shotgun and $550 in cash, police said.

Alex Green, 44, of Jersey City, Terence L. Chatman, 46, of Orlando, Fl., and Rasheed Abdulla, 24, of the Colonia section of Woodbridge, were apprehended on Dec. 22, according to police.

Detectives from the Edison Police Department’s Special Operations Group (SOG) had set up surveillance in the area and observed the three men allegedly making drug deals on Beaver Avenue, police said.

“These arrests took several armed, potentially dangerous suspects off our streets and they emphasize how valuable it is when watchful residents alert our department to criminal activity in their neighborhoods,” Police Chief Thomas Bryan said. “Community vigilance works hand-in-hand with good police work.”

Green was charged with possession and distribution of heroin, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of a firearm and distribution within 500 feet of a public housing facility. He is being held on $100,000 bail at the Middlesex County Adult Corrections Center in North Brunswick, according to police.

Chatman is being held on $50,000 bail at the county jail, charged with possession of a shotgun and controlled dangerous substances; unlawful use of body-armor, and unlawful possession of a firearm. Chatman was also found with outstanding arrest warrants from Somerset County, Newark, Hillsborough and Roselle, according to police.

Abdulla is being held on $5,000 bail, charged with possession and distribution of heroin, possession of a firearm, and public loitering to obtain controlled dangerous substances in a public place, according to police.