By Michaelangelo Conte, New Jersey Journal
Jersey City Police anti-gang officers arrested five men on drug charges Monday in the A. Harry Moore public housing complex in what new Police Chief Robert Troy calls the “beginning of a crackdown” on gang and drug activity, officials said.
Police arrested Kevin Watkins, 33, and Anthony Haynes, 42, and charged them with drug possession, possession with intent to distribute, and possession with intent to distribute within 500 feet of public property and within 1,000 feet of a school, police reports say.
Rinaldo Tudela, 37, was charged with aggravated assault on two police officers and possession of heroin, reports say.
Also arrested was Benny Council, 35, who was charged with drug possession, and Raheem Trammell, 21, who was charged with conspiracy to commit a drug offense, reports said.
Tudela is from North Bergen, Haynes is from the Lafayette Gardens public housing complex in Jersey City and the others arrested are from the A. Harry Moore complex, also in Jersey City, reports say.
When officers tried to arrest Tudela, he punched one officer and bit another, reports say.
Troy said the department will use the 30 members of the anti-gang, narcotics and street crime units to take back areas of the city plagued by crime.
“People will not be free to do business as usual and they have fair warning that the task force will clean up the city,” said Troy, who is to be sworn in as chief at a City Hall ceremony this afternoon at 2 p.m.