Two elderly Cuban citizens were arrested on Wednesday in Miami accused of operating a drug den in the Allapattah neighborhood, in a case that draws attention due to the age of those involved: one of them is 89 years old.
According to the report from Local 10, the Miami Police arrested Magdaleno Medina, 73 years old, and Cesar Valdés, 89, at a residence on the 1700 block of Northwest 19th Street, which both had registered as their address.
The operation was the result of an undercover investigation that began in August, when detectives purchased cocaine directly from that residence: Medina sold a bag of the substance to an undercover officer for $60.
On Wednesday afternoon, a SWAT team conducted a raid on the property and seized over 140 grams of cocaine and nearly 1,300 grams of marijuana, along with a .38 caliber revolver and more than a dozen rounds of ammunition.
Both men are facing several serious charges, including armed trafficking of cocaine, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and possession of a premises for the purpose of trafficking cocaine.
Prison records indicate that both defendants are under detention by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which could result in their deportation once the criminal proceedings are concluded.
The amount of cocaine seized exceeds the threshold of 28 grams, which, under Florida law, triggers mandatory minimum sentences with no exceptions for age. For quantities between 28 and 200 grams, the state statute establishes a minimum sentence of three years in prison and a fine of $50,000.
Allapattah, where the arrest took place, is a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood with a strong Cuban presence since 1959, although it also has a significant population of various origins: Dominican, Nicaraguan, Honduran, and Haitian.
At the end of last year, the Miami Police and the FBI dismantled a drug trafficking network in Operation "El Primo", with at least 20 arrests and more than 22 kilograms of cocaine seized, several of the detainees being of Cuban origin.
In 2023, a Cuban was arrested in Allapattah for cocaine trafficking and money laundering after drugs, weapons, and illegal money were found in his home.
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