NEW YORK (PIX11) — An NYPD officer and her live-in boyfriend were busted for allegedly scheming to sell fentanyl and heroin in Yonkers, authorities said.
Officer Grace Rosa Baez, 37, and her partner, Cesar Martinez, 43, allegedly offered to sell the deadly drugs to a law enforcement confidential source on several occasions between Oct. 9 and Oct. 19, including while Baez was on duty, according to federal prosecutors.
Baez and Martinez were arrested last week and charged with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and heroin and narcotics distribution, according to the complaint.
“These charges are extremely troubling because there is no place for corruption within the NYPD. If found guilty of these allegations, this officer will have tarnished the shield that she wore, as well as her sacred oath to New Yorkers,” NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said.
On Oct. 11, Baez told the confidential source she could sell two kilograms of “top quality” fentanyl for $30,000 per kilogram, and another 400 grams of heroin for a negotiable price, authorities said.
About a week later, Baez invited the source over to the Yonkers apartment she shared with Martinez to test the product. Baez allegedly gave the confidential source a plastic Mentos gum container with a fentanyl sample, prosecutors said. Baez also allegedly gave the source a heroin sample to try, according to the complaint.
On Thursday, Baez met with the source to sell them one kilogram of suspected heroin, 400 grams of suspected heroin, and 640 grams of suspected fentanyl, authorities said.
After Baez was arrested, investigators went to her Yonkers home and saw Martinez allegedly throwing drugs out the window, prosecutors said. Authorities found a kilo press and other drugs inside the apartment, according to the complaint.
“Baez and Martinez allegedly took part in a conspiracy to distribute dangerous narcotics on the streets of our city. This is a direct violation of the oath Baez took to protect and serve,” FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Smith said.
Up until her arrest, Baez was employed by the NYPD since 2012. In 2020, a misconduct accusation prompted an NYPD investigation, authorities said.
The lawyers for Baez and Martinez could not immediately be reached Sunday.
Mira Wassef is a digital reporter who has covered news and sports in the New York City area for more than a decade. She joined PIX11 News in 2022. See more of her work here.
