JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office just announced 10 arrests of people police say were connected to an international drug ring bringing narcotics from Mexico and Texas to northeast Florida.
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Sheriff T.K. Waters shared the arrests in a briefing going over the drug bust the sheriff’s office is calling “Operation Jacob’s Ladder.” Police say the operation started in Nov. 2023 and has since involved agencies like the DEA, FDLE, FHP, St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, and Camden County Sheriff’s Office.
Police say state troopers recently found 18-wheeler trucks full of drugs believed to be part of regular shipments of narcotics from Texas and Mexico to Jacksonville. Sheriff Waters didn’t share where these discoveries were made around the city.
JSO believes the drugs to be sourced through the “Gulf Cartel,” which it says also sends narcotics to other states in the southeast like Georgia and North Carolina.
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“We will never be able to qualify or quantify the lives that were saved by removing this poison, from those who profit from this poison, off of our streets,” Sheriff Waters said.
Here’s a list of what police say was found as part of its operation:
- -Narcotics like fentanyl, cocaine, marijuana and MDMA
- $212,000 in cash
- 8 handguns and 5 rifles
- Multiple vehicles used for drug trafficking
Here are the 10 arrests made so far:
- Walter Bassett, believed to be part of the “Genovese” crime family based in the northeast
- Jemani Dunn-Jennings
- Daniel Chavez Garcia
- Romondo Hicks
- Grady Hill
- Christopher Dangelo Jones
- Amelio Dominic Mack
- Esteban Rodriguez Martinez
- Damian Alexander Rojas
- Eduardo Seijas
Sheriff Waters says some of the people arrested would regularly drive narcotics from Texas to Jacksonville and others would, then, distribute the drugs throughout the city.
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“If you choose to profit off misery and death in our community, even if you gain the perceived strength from drug cartels and organized crime, we will use all of our tools and resources to ensure you are stopped,” Sheriff Waters said.
JSO says police are still investigating and expect there to be more arrests connected with this operation.
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