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Police: Two New Brunswick Men Busted On Drug Charges In Township

Carrasco-Ortega

Josue Carrasco, left, and Pablo Juarez-Ortega were arrested May 31 on drug-related charges. Photos: Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office.


Two New Brunswick men were arrested on drug-related charges May 31 in separate incidents, police said.

The men, Josue Carrasco, 33, and Pablo Juarez-Ortega, 47, were arrested on or near Somerset Street after several days’ worth of alleged drug buys, according to a press release from the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office.

At about 8 p.m. May 12, police said, Juarez-Ortega sold an undercover detective with the Somerset County Prosecutor’s Office Organized Crime and Narcotics Task Force 15 grams of cocaine in the parking lot of a Somerset Street restaurant.

An hour and a half later, at 9:30 p.m., Carrasco allegedly sold an undercover detective 10 grams of cocaine in the parking lot of a Somerset Street restaurant.

There was no indication that the detectives were the same person, or that the buys took place at the same restaurant parking lot.

At about 9:30 p.m. May 19, police said, Carrasco met the same detective at the same location and allegedly sold the detective 20 grams of cocaine.

At 7:30 p.m. on May 26, police said, Juarez-Ortega met the same undercover detective as on May 12 and sold the detective 30 grams of cocaine.

On May 31, at 2:30 p.m., Juarez-Ortega and the undercover detective met again in the area of Somerset and Ambrose streets, police said, where Juarez-Ortega allegedly sold the detective 160 grams of cocaine.

Once that sale was over, police said, other undercover detectives appeared and arrested Juarez-Ortega without incident and charged him with 1st Degree Distribution of a CDS.

At about 7:30 p.m. on May 31, Carrasco met with his undercover detective for a third time in the parking lot of a Somerset Street food store, where, police said, Carrasco sold the detective 130 grams of cocaine.

At the conclusion of that sale, police said, Carrasco was arrested and charged with 1st Degree Distribution of a CDS.

Police said the approximate street value of the cocaine seized from Juarez-Ortega was $20,500, while the approximate street value of cocaine seized from Carrasco was set at $16,000.

Juarez-Ortega was lodged in the somerset County Jail, Somerville, on cash-only bail of $200,000. Carrasco was also lodged in the Somerset County Jail, but there was no information on his bail amount.

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