Huge Drug Bust on Stock Island
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WWW.KEYSINFONET.COM SATURDAY,FEBRUARY 1, 2014 VOLUME 61, NO. 10 G 25 CENTS CRIME Huge drug bust on Stock Island Xanax, 500 Oxycodone and $25,000 per kilogram Family members pills, a “cookie” of crack (18 pounds is around 8 cocaine weighing seven kilos). charged as cops grams and more than Held on a collective bond seize cash, coke $75,000 in cash. of $13 million are Juan Soca By SEAN KINNEY Police also found almost Sr., 63; Juan Soca Jr., 42; [email protected] 700 undersized lobster tails, and Jose Soca, 38. The according to Florida Fish “compound” consisting of and Wildlife Conservation side-by-side trailers is at Two generations of a Commission spokesman 6451 6th St, a dead end. Jose Stock Island family with a Officer Robert Dube. Soca is also facing state, and Photos Courtesy Monroe County Sheriff’s Department history of drug arrests were Monroe County Sheriff’s possibly federal, fish and Lower Keys law enforcement on Wednesday and Thursday collected almost 18 pounds jailed Thursday after a raid Office spokeswoman wildlife charges for alleged- of cocaine and more than 500 Oxycodones, among other drugs, from the Stock Island on their squalid trailer “com- Deputy Becky Herrin esti- ly having 680 undersized compound of the Soca family; three generations of Socas, Juan Sr., Juan Jr., and Jose, are pound” turned up 18 pounds mated the street value of the See Bust, 2A facing felony trafficking charges. of cocaine, 2,100 bars of cocaine at between $20,000 KEYS TREASURES ROWELL’S: SIGNED AND SEALED Lost artifact Localsgets work new to knocked life down by hurri- canes,” said Martha renovate historic Klitzkie, general manager at the Reef Environmental water tower Education Foundation’s By KEVIN WADLOW headquarters on Key Senior Staff Writer Largo. “If we’d lost it, we’ll [email protected] never get it back,” Klitzkie said Thursday. Nearly lost to decades A wooden water tower, of neglect, a century-old an above-ground cistern Florida Keys artifact will made of cypress, will be soon rise again. reassembled at REEF “This is a rare opportu- office, in the median, at nity to save a piece of Keys mile marker 98.3, after history that’s been worn See Tower, 5A down by weather and Photo courtesy MONROE COUNTY Monroe County Mayor Sylvia Murphy signs closing papers Friday for the eight acres of FloridaBay waterfront property known as Rowell's Marina. The Key Largo site, purchased for $5 million, will be turned into a county park with a large open space to hold community festivals and events. 'It now belongs to Monroe County,' Murphy said. 'It's one good piece of work.' Many Upper Keys residents spent years campaigning to protect the open waterfront site from development. CRIME SuspectAlleged being rapistan alleged sexual arrested assault search with in them West once a The Virginia victim said she reported on Jan. 26. warrant for Good’s arrest pushed Good off of her extradited to Ricky Lee Good, 37, was issued. then they left separately at faces charges of sexual The victim told Officer around 3:40 p.m. Monroe County battery, false imprison- Tiffany Beeman that on Then, around 2 a.m. on By SEAN KINNEY ment, aggravated assault Jan. 25, that she met Good Jan. 26, the victim told with a deadly weapon and through her friend Howie. police Good showed up at ski [email protected] burglary, according to Later that night, Good her apartment again act- Photo courtesy REEF police spokeswoman showed back up at her ing “crazy.” A wooden tank built in 1913 to hold brackish water for a Authorities in West Alyson Crean. Duval Street apartment She told police Good Key Largo farmhouse fell into disrepair after being Virginia on Jan. 29 arrest- Good’s mother lives in alone at which point he choked her during non- neglected for decades. Now refurbished as a historical Jackson County, W.Va., allegedly “jumped on” the consensual sex then ed a man wanted by the preservation project, the tank should be reassembled Key West Police Crean said, and local victim,” according to a within weeks. Department in relation to police coordinated a police report. See Rapist, 5A INDEX Printed on 100% Classifieds . .7B recycled newsprint Living . .3B Marijuana Marathon CONTENTS © 2014 Business . .7A KEYNOTER PUBLISHING CO. Bust Soccer Obituaries . .2A Key West police seize 20 Lady Fins play for title Opinion . .6A pounds of pot from man’s today, advance to regional, Sports/Outdoors . .1B home, Story, 4A Story, 1B Crossword . .6B 7786790 22222 2A Saturday, February 1, 2014 KeysInfoNet.com Keynoter NEWS BRIEFS Everglades announces CopsFrom Bust, 1A seize drug cache in Stock Island raid birding days o b t a i n e d the search lobsters at his house. w a r r a n t The public is invited to The three had a first after Soca participate in the Big Day appearance Friday after- Jr. alleged- Birding Adventure, a "citi- noon in front of Monroe ly sold 1.5 zen science" activity to County Circuit Judge Peary ounces of count birds within the varied Fowler. c o c a i n e habitats of Everglades Assistant Monroe SOCA, JOSE Tuesday to National Park. County State Attorney an under- Meet at the Anhinga Trail Mark Wilson is assigned to cover operative near the parking area at 8 a.m. on the prosecute the Socas; he con- Stock Island Lobster Co., following Saturdays: Feb 1, ducted a walk-through of where Soca Sr. has a com- Feb. 15, March 1, March 15 the scene Thursday as mercial fishing boat. Juan and March 29. The Anhinga Monroe County Sheriff’s Soca Sr. and Jose Soca were Trail is in the Royal Palm Office deputies and Key at the compound when the area of Everglades National West police scoured the warrant was served Park, about four miles past trailers and surrounding Wednesday. the main entrance to the property for evidence. Soca Jr. park, or 15 miles southeast “It’s a big haul,” Wilson was picked of the town of Homestead. told the Keynoter. “We up a short Be prepared to drive your haven’t had a seven kilo time later own car over 40 miles one- seizure in a long time. And at an apart- way to points of interest these guys have been ment build- along the Main Park Road. around a long time.” ing on The activity lasts about six Sheriff Rick Ramsay S o u t h hours and ends at Flamingo. echoed those sentiments: SOCA, JUAN JR. Roosevelt Participants should pack a “This is not the first time we Boulevard lunch and water and prepare have served drug-related in Key West and had about for sun and mosquitoes. search warrants on the Soca 300 Oxycodone pills with Some walking is involved. property,” him. The search of the com- Photos Courtesy Monroe County Sheriff’s Department “But we are going to do pound “went on late into the Front of the Soca family compound on 6th Street, Stock Island, where detectives found everything we can to make night Wednesday and KEYS WEATHER sure it is the last,” he con- resumed Thursday morning eight kilos of cocaine, along with large amounts of other drugs and cash. tinued. “The drug activity as detectives continued to PREDICTED TEMPERATURES by these members of the find drugs and money hid- U.S. Attorney’s Office in ed, the cocaine trafficking that violation. Soca family is a danger to den in vari- Miami will handle the charges carry a 15-year Chief Monroe County DAY HIGH LOW everyone in our county. ous areas, apparent fishery violations. mandatory minimum state Circuit Court Judge David SAT. 80 72 “The detectives who including Soca Sr. i s charged with prison sentence, while the Audlin signed the warrants. SUN. 79 72 worked on this case - from buried in cocaine trafficking; Soca Jr. Oxy trafficking charges Working with the MON. 80 73 multiple agencies - did an the ground, with “opium or derivative carry a 25-year mandatory Sheriff’s Office were Key TUES. 80 72 outstanding job of stopping hidden in trafficking” for the Oxy; minimum. West police, the Monroe these criminals from their concealed and Jose Soca is charged Herrin said Soca Jr. and High Intensity Drug ongoing efforts to distribute c o m p a r t - with cocaine and Oxy traf- Sr. were charged with traf- Trafficking Area Group, the Forecast: Expect mostly large amounts of illegal nar- m e n t s , ficking, then possession of ficking in cocaine in 2002. Key West HIDTA Task sunny skies into next week. cotics. This operation will SOCA , JUAN SR. false elec- a controlled substance She said Soca Jr. - who has Force and Homeland really make a dent in the t r i c a l without a prescription for a 28 arrests since 2001 on Security Investigations. For the extended forecast visit drug activity in our commu- boxes and in a boat fender the Xanax and possession various charges - was also SWAT teams from the KeysInfoNet.com/weather nity.” nailed to a fence.” of the undersized lobsters, arrested for trafficking in Sheriff’s Office and the Key Herrin gave the follow- They found the lobster according to booking infor- cocaine in 2003. West Police Department ing account: tails bagged up in a freezer. mation. Wilson said he served executed the warrant. The Sheriff’s Office Wilson said it’s likely the Wilson said, if convict- two years in state prison for BEACH ADVISORIES MARATHON KEY WEST The Monroe County Health Department tests Keys beaches every two weeks for the presence of enteric bacteria.