Crime & Safety

Newark Man Busted with Crystal Meth and GHB, Cops Say

"These officers made a great arrest and found two unique drugs on one actor," said Fort Lee Police Captain Thomas Ottina.

Police patrolling the borough arrested a Newark man Tuesday on charges of distribution and possession of drugs not commonly seen here, according to Fort Lee Police.

Police Officers Michael Ferraro and Laki Pothos saw an Infiniti traveling east on Lemoine Avenue swerve from the right lane to the left and then back to the right lane, nearly hitting the curb, at approximately 3:30 a.m. Tuesday. 

The officers pulled over the car near the intersection of Lemoine Avenue and Tom Hunter Road, according to police reports.

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“While [Police Officer Michael] Ferraro was speaking with the driver, Ivan Natal, he observed that Ivan was extremely nervous and shaking,” according to Captain Thomas Ottina.  

Ferraro said he smelled an odor marijuana coming from the vehicle, and the officers questioned the driver and the Cliffside Park man who was a passenger in the Infiniti.  

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Natal, 24, of Newark, gave the officers consent to search the car, according to police records, and cops found a black backpack in the rear of the vehicle containing eight hypodermic syringes; a glass container with a clear liquid; two small bags with a rock-like substance; and a blue colored jar with a clear, rock-like substance. 

Natal admitted to owning the backpack, cops said. Police, believing the items to be narcotics, arrested Natal and released his passenger.

The backpack was more thoroughly searched at Fort Lee Police Headquarters, cops said, where authorities say they discovered eight blue pills, a liquid dropper, three butane lighters, 51 black glassine envelopes and a digital scale.  

Police said the liquid was later determined to be gamma-hydroxybutyrate, more commonly known by the street name GHB. The clear, rock-like substance was identified by police as methamphetamine.

Natal was charged with distribution of methamphetamine; possession of GHB; possession of a hypodermic syringe and drug paraphernalia; and an unsafe lane change.

"We don’t find much crystal meth in this area and GHB arrests are also uncommon," Ottina said. "These officers made a great arrest and found two unique drugs on one actor."

Judge Matthew Fierro arraigned Natal on $100,000 bail with no 10 percent option. Natal was transported to the Bergen County Jail.


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