The FBI and federal prosecutors on Friday announced a \u201chistoric\u201d indictment charging 33 alleged members of the Weymouth Street Drug Trafficking Organization accused of fueling Kensington\u2019s open-air drug market for nearly a decade.<\/p>\n
Officials said 24 defendants were arrested in coordinated operations Friday, eight were already in custody, and one remains at large.<\/p>\n
Authorities executed 11 federal search warrants, and results are pending.<\/p>\n
At a Philadelphia news conference, FBI Director\u00a0Kash Patel\u00a0called the operation a model for reclaiming violent corridors from crews, praising years of collaboration between\u00a0the FBI, Philadelphia Police Department and the US Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday, even more criminals are off the streets because of the diligent work of the FBI and our partners,\u201d FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News Digital in an exclusive statement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOver 30 people have been charged for their alleged role in drug trafficking and dozens of other offenses.\u00a0 These individuals were charged with distributing fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine on one of the most prolific drug blocks in Philadelphia. They were members of a violent drug trafficking organization and used violence to enforce their territory and sell drugs that poison our city streets and community. The FBI will continue our work to put an end to drug trafficking and violence in our cities.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis takedown is how you safeguard American cities from coast to coast,\u201d Patel said. \u201cWe have permanently removed a drug trafficking organization off the\u00a0streets of Philadelphia.\u201d<\/p>\n
Accused members of the Weymouth Street Drug Trafficking Organization walk down a street to distribute drugs Department of Justice<\/p>\n
FBI Director Kash Patel speaks during a press briefing at the offices of the US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York on Oct. 23, 2025. ZUMAPRESS.com<\/p>\n
US Attorney David Metcalf said the case centers on the 3100 block of Weymouth Street in Kensington, a prolific stretch of the city\u2019s open-air market. The indictment charges a conspiracy dating to January 2016 through October 2025 involving fentanyl, heroin, crack cocaine and cocaine.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a massive\u00a0drug-trafficking conspiracy\u00a0spanning nearly a decade, the largest federal indictment this century brought by our district,\u201d Metcalf said. \u201cWe targeted it like a precision missile at Kensington\u2019s epicenter.\u201d<\/p>\n
Metcalf said 22 defendants were arrested during the sweep, while eight already in local custody will be transferred to federal court next week. Agents have recovered dozens of firearms and significant amounts of narcotics from alleged stash locations; totals will be detailed in court filings.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors said the organization was allegedly led by Jose Antonio Morales Nieves, 45, of Luquillo, Puerto Rico, known as \u2018Flaco,\u2019 who \u201cessentially owned\u201d the block and charged rent to other dealers; Ramon Roman-Montanez, 40, of Philadelphia, known as \u2018Viejo,\u2019 who managed daily operations and organized shifts; and Nancy Rios-Valentin, 33, of Philadelphia, who also oversaw finances and shift schedules.<\/p>\n
The crew allegedly used violence to enforce its territory including shootings, murder and assaults and retaliated against witnesses who cooperated with law enforcement.<\/p>\n
During a Q&A, officials said no substantive murder or shooting counts have been filed but the investigation continues.<\/p>\n
Suspects hold weapons up to a camera during a music video. Department of Justice<\/p>\n
The Department of Justice released a sample of a schedule used by the suspects. Department of Justice<\/p>\n
FBI Special Agent in Charge Wayne Jacobs said the operation used nine tactical teams and involved\u00a0hundreds of officers.<\/p>\n
Most arrests occurred in Kensington, with others in Puerto Rico, Delaware and New Jersey.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor too long the Weymouth Street drug organization flooded Kensington with drugs and terrorized residents with horrific acts of violence and intimidation,\u201d Jacobs said. \u201cThat ended today.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the FBI will launch public-safety ads urging residents to share crime tips securely.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur job doesn\u2019t end with these arrests,\u201d Jacobs added. \u201cWe will remain here, standing with the people of Kensington.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said the case shows the city\u2019s shift to treating open-air markets as an organized public-safety threat, not isolated street dealing.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not going to apologize for removing people who terrorize our community,\u201d Bethel said. \u201cThis is the model we can keep running.\u201d<\/p>\n
Officials framed the case as part of PSN Recon, an offshoot of Project Safe Neighborhoods that merges federal, state and local intelligence to target violent offenders block-by-block.<\/p>\n
Weymouth DTO members are armed with firearms to promote the reputation of the group in a video. Department of Justice<\/p>\n
A masked suspect points two guns towards a camera in a music video posted to YouTube. Department of Justice<\/p>\n
Metcalf said the group meets monthly to identify the most dangerous actors and pursue\u00a0organization-level prosecutions\u00a0instead of one-off gun or drug cases.<\/p>\n
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche added: \u201cDrug traffickers who poison our communities and enforce their territory through violence will face the full force of federal law. Working alongside our state and local partners, the Department of Justice will continue to dismantle these criminal networks and restore safety to neighborhoods that have suffered for far too long.\u201d<\/p>\n
Patel closed by thanking investigators and line prosecutors who built the case. \u201cYou need courageous prosecutors to bring these cases,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is exactly how you safeguard American lives. The blocks belong to the residents, not the drug dealers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the criminals that remain out there,\u201d Metcalf warned, \u201cthe next indictment has a space with your name on it.\u201d<\/p>\n
All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty and charges are allegations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The FBI and federal prosecutors on Friday announced a \u201chistoric\u201d indictment charging 33 alleged members of the Weymouth…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":14524,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[11008,11009,3635,11010,69,71,70,302],"class_list":{"0":"post-14523","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-philadelphia","8":"tag-drug-trade","9":"tag-drugs","10":"tag-fbi","11":"tag-gangs","12":"tag-philadelphia","13":"tag-philadelphia-headlines","14":"tag-philadelphia-news","15":"tag-us-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}