Two Others Arrested Last Month
NEWARK, N.J. - A Paterson, New Jersey, woman was arrested today in connection with her alleged role in a conspiracy to distribute heroin and fentanyl in New Jersey and Vermont, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.
Nysifah Deaveareaux, 27, is charged by criminal complaint with conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and 100 grams or more of heroin. She is scheduled to make her initial court appearance today by videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge James B. Clark III.
Caron J. Abrams, 26, of Paterson, was charged by criminal complaint on Aug.14, 2020, with possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. He appeared by videoconference before the U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Dickson and was detained without bail.
Shamir Williams, 25, of Paterson, was charged by complaint on Aug. 14, 2020, along with Deaveareaux, with conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and 100 grams or more of heroin. On Aug. 20, 2020, Williams appeared by videoconference before U.S. Magistrate Judge Cathy L. Waldor and was detained without bail.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
From May 2020 through Aug. 13, 2020, Williams negotiated sales of heroin to another individual. On June 11, 2020, pursuant to these negotiations, Deaveareaux transported approximately 250 “bricks," or over 12,000 individual doses of heroin, from Paterson and distributed the heroin in Vermont. On Aug. 13, 2020, Abrams attempted to deliver 200 “bricks," or over 9,000 individual doses of heroin and fentanyl, to an individual at a Passaic County Home Depot parking lot, where he was taken into custody.
Each of the crimes charged carries a minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison, and a fine of at least $5 million.
U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents and task force officers with the DEA in New Jersey and New England, under the direction of Special Agents in Charge Susan Gibson and Brian D. Boyle, respectively, with the investigation leading to the charges.
This investigation was conducted as part of the Paterson Violent Crime Initiative (VCI). The VCI was formed in 2020 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey and the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office, for the sole purpose of combatting violent crime in and around Paterson. As part of this partnership, federal, state, county, and city agencies collaborate to strategize and prioritize the prosecution of violent offenders who endanger the safety of the community. The VCI is composed of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) New Jersey Division, the Department of Homeland Security - Homeland Security Investigations, the Paterson Police Department, the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office, the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office, New Jersey State Parole, and the New Jersey State Police Regional Operations and Intelligence Center/Real Time Crime Center.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori of the Organized Crime and Gangs Unit.
The charges and allegations contained in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
