Marlboro man pleads guilty to role in Shore cocaine trafficking ring
TOMS RIVER - A 43-year-old Marlboro man has pleaded guilty to his role in one ring of an organized crime network that was responsible for moving almost seven pounds of cocaine each week into Ocean, Monmouth and Middlesex counties, Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said Thursday.
James Hemenway, 43, of the Morganville section, is expected to be sentenced to seven years in state prison after admitting to conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute when he is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 23 before state Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan, according to a statement from the Prosecutor’s Office.
Hemenway was one of 24 people charged in three cocaine distribution networks uncovered in “Operation Checkmate” last October, at the conclusion of the four-month-long investigation by law enforcement officers at the local, county, state and federal government levels. In total, authorities seized more than four kilograms of cocaine and more than 15 pounds of marijuana — all in excess of $650,000. Also seized were seven firearms, three handguns, three “ghost guns,” one pistol grip shotgun, 10 motor vehicles and additional illegal narcotics.
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On Oct. 26, detectives executed search warrants at Hemenway’s home and upon two motor vehicles at the residence. As a result, detectives seized about 130 grams of cocaine and $29,000 in cash that was in his possession. Hemenway was taken to the Ocean County Jail in Toms River and later released after a detention hearing, according to the statement.
Ocean County Assistant Prosecutor Stephen Burke is handling the case on behalf of the state of New Jersey.
During the operation, bout 50 law enforcement officers from around the region were assigned full-time to Ocean County’s Narcotics Strike Force.
Contact Asbury Park Press reporter Erik Larsen at elarsen@gannettnj.com.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Marlboro NJ man pleads guilty in cocaine trafficking ring
