Eduardo Colon-Lopez, 37, of Philadelphia, was sentenced to 10 years in state prison, including 30 months of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Bernard E. DeLury Jr. in Atlantic County. He pleaded guilty on Aug. 4 to a charge of first-degree distribution of cocaine, which was contained in a March 25, 2015 indictment returned by an Atlantic County grand jury. Colon-Lopez was arrested on Sept. 20, 2014, in the parking lot of the Deptford Mall as the result of an investigation by the Atlantic City Task Force (ACTF), which includes members of state, county, local and federal law enforcement agencies. He had been in the Atlantic County Jail since his arrest, with bail set at $250,000.
Colon-Lopez’s arrest was part of an investigation by the Atlantic City Task Force into a conspiracy to distribute bulk quantities of cocaine in Atlantic City. Up until his arrest, Colon-Lopez was known to the ACTF only as “Papito.” To apprehend him, members of the ACTF initiated an undercover investigation through which they arranged for Colon-Lopez to sell a kilogram of cocaine for $40,000 to an undercover member of the New Jersey State Police. Colon-Lopez agreed to complete the sale at a location in Atlantic City, but at the last minute, the location was changed to the Deptford Mall. Members of the State Police TEAMS (Technical Emergency and Mission Specialists) Unit arrested Colon-Lopez in the mall parking lot on the morning of Sept. 20, 2014, after he delivered a black duffel bag containing a plastic-wrapped kilo brick of cocaine to the undercover officer.
Deputy Attorney General James Ruberton prosecuted Colon-Lopez for the Division of Criminal Justice Specialized Crimes Bureau. Detective Luis Freites was the lead detective for the New Jersey State Police. Acting Attorney General Hoffman thanked the members of the Atlantic County Task Force responsible for the investigation and arrest, including the New Jersey State Police, ICE Homeland Security Investigations, Atlantic County Prosecutor’s Office, Atlantic County Sheriff’s Office, Atlantic City Police Department and Pleasantville Police Department. Acting Attorney General Hoffman also thanked the Pennsylvania Bureau of Narcotics Investigations for its valuable assistance.
####