Middletown Man and Montague, New Jersey Man Charged with Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the First Degree

Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler and Orange County Sheriff Paul Arteta, announced that Ronald Lempka, 23, of Middletown, and Keanu Alicea, 29, of Montague, New Jersey were arrested and charged with Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the First Degree and related charges.  Both Lempka and Alicea were arraigned in the Centralized Arraignment Part and remanded to Orange County Jail without bail.

As alleged in charging documents filed and comments made in court, a months-long undercover investigation into the trafficking of cocaine in and around the Town of Wallkill via Montague, New Jersey resulted in the execution of judicially authorized search warrants at residences and vehicles in Wallkill and Montague.  During the course of the investigation and the execution of the search warrants, law enforcement recovered approximately 150 grams of cocaine, over $28,000 in United States currency, and a defaced handgun.

District Attorney Hoovler thanked the Orange County Drug Task Force, and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office for their investigation which led to the arrests of Lempka and Alicea. District Attorney Hoovler also thanked the New York State Police Violent Gangs and Narcotics Enforcement Team (VGNET); Sussex NJ Guns, Gangs and Narcotics Task Force; Town of Wallkill Police Department; City of Middletown Police Department; and the Hudson Valley Crime Analysis Center for their assistance during the investigation.

“Narcotics traffickers know no borders or boundaries as they spread their dangerous drugs in our community,” said District Attorney David M. Hoovler. “The only way to disrupt such high-level trafficking is through meticulous, coordinated and skilled long-term investigations utilizing all of the resources available to police and prosecutors.  This enforcement action is another example of the dedication of my Office and our law enforcement partners to countering the deadly spread of drugs.  It is one of the great responsibilities of law enforcement to identify these drug dealers, arrest them and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”

“These types of investigations are complex and dangerous,” said Orange County Sheriff Paul Arteta. “They involve skilled undercover work, excellent communication, and precise surveillance. We are proud to have such a great team of investigators doing one of the most challenging jobs in police work for our communities. They had a mission to eliminate a main transport line of cocaine into our Orange County community, and that is what they did.”

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alexis Gregory.

A criminal charge is merely an allegation by the police that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law, and it is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the State of New York’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.