Reputed Wilkes-Barre Drug Trafficking Hub To Become Deli

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WILKES-BARRE – The Master Barber Shop on Hazle Street has been shuttered for more than a month, ever since prosecutors called it the “hub” of a multimillion-dollar drug trafficking operation.

But on Friday, the shop was abuzz.  Workers swept the floors, cleaned the shop and put a fresh coat of paint out front.

A sign on the front window tells the neighborhood a “Mexican deli” is on its way.

City resident Fernando Ortega, 45, said he hopes to open the shop in about a month.  He plans to install a small grill to cook food, he said, and will sell soft drinks, coffee, sandwiches and tacos.

Read more: http://citizensvoice.com/news/reputed-drug-trafficking-hub-to-become-deli-1.1534029

Wilkes-Barre Barber Shop Alleged Hub Of Drug Trafficking

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

WILKES-BARRE — Undercover drug agents believe Ramon Colon was providing more than haircuts from The Master Barber Shop on Hazle Avenue.

Billed as the “The Best Cut in Town,” the barbershop that opened within the last year was “the hub” of a major cocaine and marijuana trafficking organization, said state Deputy Attorney General Tim Doherty.

Colon, 26, and his wife, Alexandra Mateo, 21, of Mayflower Crossing, Wilkes-Barre, were described by Doherty as the alleged ring leaders that peddled hundreds of pounds of marijuana and several kilos of cocaine from New York City to Luzerne County for the last eight months.

About 15 drug agents armed with assault rifles and wearing bulletproof armor served search warrants early Thursday morning at the barbershop and across the street at Idley’s Furniture Store. The apartment of Colon and Mateo at Mayflower Crossing on South Empire Street was searched, as was a residence on Coplay Place in Mountain Top.

Read more:  http://www.timesleader.com/news/local-news/633462/W-B-barber-shop-alleged-hub-of-drug-trafficking