Cocaine highway into R.I. a tempting route for police | Rhode Island news | projo.com | The Providence Journal

Cocaine highway into R.I. a tempting route for police | Rhode Island news | projo.com | The Providence Journal: "Brayanth A. Fernandez, 36, who lived in the apartment, was caught with more than four kilograms of cocaine and more than $96,000, according to the police, and he was charged with drug offenses in federal court.
Initiative and diligence make for successful prosecutions in Rhode Island’s war on drugs, the police say. And sometimes, they admit, luck plays a role.
Given Rhode Islanders’ large appetite for cocaine and other illicit drugs, and the ability of international distribution networks to keep the market well-stocked, it seems to be a war without end.
The conflict regained public attention in March with the arrest of three Providence police officers on drug charges.
In a joint state police/FBI investigation called Operation Deception, Detective Joseph A. Colanduono, Sgt. Stephen T. Gonsalves and Patrolman Robert J. Hamlin Jr. were charged with participation in a large-scale cocaine ring allegedly operated by Albert B. Hamlin, the patrolman’s younger brother. The state police also said Gonsalves tried to buy cocaine.
Four more officers under suspicion in the case were placed on restricted duty.
The Providence Police Department has been alive with rumors as officers cringe at the possibility that even more of their colleagues have gone rogue. The state police have charged seven people so far in the investigation, including Albert Hamlin and the three officers, and state police Supt. Brendan P. Doherty has said that other officers are under investigation."