Three ranking members of a drug-trafficking ring allegedly headquartered on an Atlantic City street have pleaded guilty.
Arcadia Ridley, James DiMeo and Keith Potter are free pending their sentencings in the case dubbed "Operation: Florida Keys," named for the street where it was based.
The heroin/fentanyl was stamped "Bad Bunny," which was linked to 25 overdoses in the county, including eight that were fatal, officials said at the time.
Justin and Joseph Suarez, the brothers who allegedly led the enterprise that officials said left residents on South Florida Avenue living in fear, remain jailed along with seven others.
The enterprise had captains who insulated the leaders and ran stash houses with first-degree amounts of drugs, with lieutenants under them, Lt. Dan Corcoran explained at a news conference held to announce the outcome in November.
Since then, two captains and one lieutenant in the enterprise have pleaded guilty, with only one looking at state prison time.
Ridley, 32, was at her home in Absecon’s The Landings, when it was raided. She had about 15,000 bags of heroin/fentanyl and a handgun in a suitcase on the floor of her bedroom closet.
The drugs and unsecured gun were all within reach of her 5-year-old daughter, the affidavit previously obtained by BreakingAC claims.
She faces two concurrent five-year sentences under the plea agreement for the charges of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and unlawful possession of a handgun. She faces one year of parole ineligibility.
The child endangerment charge was one of those dropped under the agreement. It is unclear if she has custody of her daughter.
Ridley's is also the only case where something is listed under whether she has been given any additional promises or representations as part of the pleas. Whatever is written was redacted from the public record.
James DiMeo, 60, an Atlantic City resident who was also a captain in the enterprise, will have probation recommended at his sentencing, conditioned upon 180 days in the Atlantic County Justice Facility.
His time will run concurrent with a sentence out of Camden County related to drug charges in Winslow Township, court records show.
Keith Potter, 60, lieutenant in the group, was the first to plead, signing his agreement in December.
The Galloway Township resident faces 364 days in the county jail followed by five years' probation. That agreement closes several open cases, including a 2020 drug arrest he had in which Justin Suarez was also a co-defendant.
All three will await sentencing until all the cases are resolved, according to the plea agreements obtained by BreakingAC.
