Attorney General announces indictment of 54 people in Capital Region drug trafficking case (2024)

ALBANY, NY (WRGB) — New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Wednesday the indictment of 54 members of a drug trafficking ring for their roles in distributing heroin laced with fentanyl, powder and crack cocaine, and methamphetamine to Fulton, Montgomery, Saratoga, Albany, Rensselaer, Schenectady, and Warren counties sourced from New York City dealers.

The year-long investigation led to the seizure of approximately two kilograms of methamphetamine, 1.5 kilograms of cocaine, 14 grams of heroin, four handguns, and $25,000 in cash.

“Dangerous drugs have devastated too many communities throughout our state and claimed too many lives,” said Attorney General James. “As New Yorkers and Americans across the country witnessed the greatest number of drug overdose deaths in history in 2020, the defendants here were allegedly flooding our streets with the very types of drugs that caused this devastation. Today, we are putting an end to their efforts that put New Yorkers in harm’s way. My office will continue to pursue and hold accountable anyone who violates the law. I thank our partners in law enforcement for their critical support in this takedown.”

The takedown was the result of a joint investigation between the Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) Organized Crime Task Force (OCTF), the Johnstown Police Department, the Gloversville Police Department, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, the Amsterdam Police Department, the Schenectady Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, and the New York State Police. The investigation — codenamed “Operation Garage Days” — included covert surveillance and hundreds of hours of wiretaps over numerous targeted phones.

As alleged in the indictment, the central figures in this narcotics distribution network were Brianna Nichols and Michael Kuntzsch, who often worked together to obtain and sell methamphetamine and cocaine in Fulton County. The investigation also revealed that Nichols had various sources of supply for the methamphetamine and narcotics that she sold to customers who travelled to her from around the Capital Region. Kuntzsch had customers based in Montgomery, Fulton, Saratoga, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties.

During the course of the investigation, investigators intercepted communications in which Sahib Braan, Miguel John, Christopher Mitchell, and Jordan Thomas plotted and attempted a home invasion robbery of a rival narcotics trafficker in Gloversville. The investigators were able to thwart the robbery plot, intercept the would-be robbers, and seize a loaded handgun that they had planned to use.

“This drug trafficking organization distributed everything from crack cocaine, to methamphetamine, to heroin,” said DEA New York Division Special Agent in Charge Ray Donovan. “We are proud to have worked in partnership with our many law enforcement partners and the Office of the Attorney General to dismantle this organization, and others like it, that do nothing but pollute our communities with addictive and deadly drugs.”

The 376-count indictment — unsealed Wednesday in Fulton County Court — charges the defendants with various counts of Criminal Sale and Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance (class A, B, C, D felonies) and Conspiracy in the Second Degree (class B felony).

Those charged include:

Walter Allen, 51 years old, Gloversville, NY

Darnell Alston, 49 years old, Gloversville, NY

Zionna Belknap, 21 years old, Gloversville, NY

Everett Russell Bishop, 48 years old, Wilton, NY

Toni Borromeo, 45 years old, Gloversville, NY

Sahib Braan, 30 years old, Troy, NY

Octavius Brooks, 24 years old, Binghamton, NY

Lamar Brown, 35 years old, Gloversville, NY