An investigation into a criminal organization operating out of a Castor Gardens restaurant led to arrests of five people and netted seven firearms and more than $600,000 worth of drugs, authorities said.
The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office said a raid last week focused on a drug and gun trafficking organization operating out of Miracles Jamaican Restaurant & Bakery, 6635 Castor Ave.
In total, agents seized about 1,444 grams of alleged heroin and fentanyl, 842 grams of suspected crystal meth, 510 grams of marijuana and nearly 400 prescription drug pills, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
Authorities estimated the combined street value of the drugs to be more than $665,000.
Of the seven guns seized, five were acquired through controlled purchases as part of the investigation, and two were nabbed in the raid, the Attorney General’s Office said.
Authorities also recovered $1,708 in cash.
Miracles Jamaican Restaurant & Bakery has received fairly good reviews online and even earned a mention in a story by Philadelphia Inquirer food critic Craig Laban in a 2017 story titled “Taste of the Northeast.”
A woman who answered the phone at the eatery on Tuesday said anyone who was involved in any kind of illegal activity is in custody.
“There’s nobody here who was involved or knows about that,” she told the Times.
Carmelo Armstrong, 23, of the 2300 block of Rhawn Street in Rhawnhurst, Dwight Grant, 32, of the 2600 block of Elbridge Street in Mayfair, Twana Miller, also of the 2600 block of Elbridge, Stanley Williams, 33, of North Philadelphia, and Lamar Richardson, 19, of Nicetown, were arrested as part of the investigation, according to a news release.
An arrest warrant was also issued for Richard Harmon, who is currently a fugitive, the Attorney General’s Office said.
All were charged Friday with multiple counts of gun trafficking, conspiracy, and drug trafficking and are scheduled to appear in court June 28.
The investigation was conducted by the Attorney General’s Gun Violence Task Force, Philadelphia Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI. ••
