Suspected Bronx drug dealer tortured rivals with hot iron on buttocks: prosecutors
A suspected drug trafficker who was arraigned in court on Thursday after 18 months on the lam was a vengeful Bronx dealer who kidnapped and tortured at least two of his rivals by using a hot clothes iron to burn them on their butts, prosecutors said.
The torture victims made the mistake of stealing drugs from Jonathan Huertas and his associates early last year — and paid a cruel price for their piracy — according to the Bronx district attorney’s office.
The torture occurred in the basement of a Bronx apartment where Huertas and three others ran their drug operation, court records stated. After drugs were stolen from their SUV, Huertas, in a recorded video, can be seen repeatedly threatening a restrained male victim and placing a heated iron on his exposed buttocks.
Authorities said the victim was physically bound and held against his will in the Morris Park apartment. A second video shows another victim enduring the same torture in the same place.
Yet another video revealed that Huertas and one of his partners, Cesar Jimenez, melted a plastic bottle above the exposed buttock of the first victim and allowed the melted plastic to drip on the victim’s skin, prosecutors said.
Searches and surveillance led to the arrests of Jimenez and two others, but Huertas, 31, managed to escape and stay on the run for 18 months — until authorities caught up with him in September in Jalisco, Mexico.
“The illegal drugs flooding our city are not only causing record overdose deaths, but members of criminal organizations involved in the importation and distribution have been charged with crimes of cruelty and disregard for human life,” Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan said in a statement.
“Today’s announcement demonstrates the commitment of federal, state and local law enforcement to assuring that those responsible are held accountable.”
Portions of the kidnappings were captured in audio and video recordings recovered from cellphones and iCloud accounts, officials said.
Authorities using text messages secured from the suspects’ cell phones also determined that Huertas and his crew targeted a third man to be kidnapped, but didn’t get a chance to follow through.
After, Cesar Jimenez, Ronny Jimenez and Jasmin Roman were arrested in early February 2022, Huertas fled the city, officials said. At the time of his September arrest in Mexico, he was in possession of a fraudulent Mexican identification card in addition to his New York State identification, according to authorities.
Huertas has been charged with kidnapping, assault, trafficking, criminal possession of a controlled substance and conspiracy.
“This indictment demonstrates the dark side of drug trafficking; threats of violence, kidnapping, and torture,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Frank Tarentino.
The other suspects pleaded guilty to similar charges and received sentences of between three and seven years in prison
