Two Passaic County Men Sentenced for Roles in Narcotics Conspiracy

Dwayne Northern, a/k/a “Black,” a/k/a “D Black,” 35, was sentenced to 51 months in prison for conspiring to distribute heroin and distributing heroin and Isaiah Hargrove, 21, was sentenced to 40 months in prison for conspiring to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and 100 grams or more of heroin, and to distributing a quantity of fentanyl and heroin.

Northern previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Brian R. Martinotti in Newark federal court to an information charging him with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute heroin and knowingly and intentionally distributing heroin. Hargrove previously pleaded guilty before Judge Martinotti to an information charging him with conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin and 40 grams or more of fentanyl and knowingly and intentionally distributing heroin and fentanyl. Judge Martinotti imposed the sentences by videoconference today.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

The defendants and their conspirators are all members and associates of the 230 Boys street gang, which operates primarily in and around Rosa Parks Boulevard and Godwin Avenue in Paterson. Through investigative techniques, including numerous controlled purchases of narcotics, consensually recorded telephone calls and text messages, physical surveillance, and the analysis of telephone call detail records, law enforcement officers determined that from September 2018 through Oct. 1, 2019, the defendants and others conspired to distribute narcotics, to include heroin and fentanyl.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Martinotti sentenced Northern to three years of supervised release and sentenced Hargrove to two years of supervised release.

This case is being conducted under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations, and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents and task force officers with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Newark Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Charlie J. Patterson; special agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Susan A. Gibson in Newark; officers of the N.J. State Police, under the direction of Col. Patrick J. Callahan; officers of the Paterson Police Department, under the direction of Director Jerry Speziale and Police Chief Ibrahim Baycora; detectives of the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Prosecutor Camelia Valdes; and the Passaic County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Richard H. Berdnik, with the investigation leading to the charges. He also thanked the U.S. Marshals Service, the Bergen County Sheriff’s Office and the Belleville and Livingston police departments for their assistance with the case.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francesca Liquori, of the Organized Crime and Gangs Unit.