February 17, 2016
Source/Montgomery County District Attorney's Office
David Pacheco, of East Norriton, faces multiple criminal charges for his alleged involvement in a conspiracy to acquire, transport, store and distribute heroin in the United States and Montgomery County.
The Montgomery County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday the arrest of a drug trafficking suspect and the seizure of more than three kilos of heroin – valued in excess of $1 million – that had been transported across state lines inside retrofitted car batteries.
The investigation, named "Operation EverStart," was carried out over a nine-month period by local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.
In April 2015, East Norriton resident David Pacheco was identified as the primary suspect in the investigation led by Montgomery County Detectives. Since last September, investigators documented at least nine trips Pacheco allegedly made to provide heroin to wholesale buyers in New York City. In each instance, Pacheco drove to Atlanta to pick up the heroin stored in car batteries before driving back to Montgomery County and then transporting the drugs to the Bronx. After receiving payment, Pacheco would allegedly drive back to Atlanta to deliver the cash.
Pacheco, who owns D&J Towing in Norristown, was arrested January 10 on suspicion of his involvement in a criminal conspiracy to acquire, transport, store, and distribute heroin in the United States and Montgomery County. When he was taken into custody at the King of Prussia toll plaza of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, officials seized 3.012 kilos of a white substance later determined to be heroin. He was arraigned and held at Montgomery County Correctional Facility on $1 million bail.
“Heroin is cheap, it’s deadly and it’s impacting the lives of too many families in Montgomery County and across the United States," said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele. "We have severed an artery in a significant heroin trafficking organization, ultimately stopping the flow of this deadly drug into and through our area by David Pacheco. Taking more than three kilos of heroin out of the pipeline is a huge success for the safety and well being of the people of Montgomery County and the larger region.”
For the nine deliveries documented since September 2015, Pacheco is charged with participating in a corrupt organization, criminal conspiracy, delivery, and possession with the intent to deliver a controlled substance, dealing in unlawful proceeds, and illegal use of a communication facility.
The case will be prosecuted by District Attorney Steele and the Captain of the Narcotics Unit, Kelly Lloyd.
