Glen Rock Police Clearing Heroin From Streets

Glen Rock police say they've removed more than $25,000 worth of heroin off the streets since the start of 2013.

In a presentation to the Glen Rock Borough Council on Wednesday, Cpt. Jonathan Miller said a total of 1,337 decks (bags) of heroin have been confiscated, mostly through motor vehicle stops.

In total, drugs with a street value of $26,740 have been cleared from the borough since January, Miller said. More than 70 arrests on heroin charges have been made by police this year.

"This is a group effort within the police department," the captain told the council and audience. "Everybody really is doing a phenomenal job."

There have been well-publicized heroin arrests in Glen Rock over the past two months.

At about 1:30 p.m. on July 10, Police Officer Michael Trover saw a vehicle with a cracked headlight traveling down Route 208.

According to Miller, Trover pulled the vehicle over, noticed track marks on the driver's arms, received consent to search, was told drugs were in the vehicle, and discovered $10,000 worth of heroin hidden in a secret compartment. The pair of New York men were arrested.

Trover alone has found $19,000 in heroin this year, Miller noted. 

Weeks before, an 18-year-old Glen Rock High School student was arrested at school on charges of heroin distribution. Police said they found heroin and large sums of cash on the room of Tristan Rodas.

In February, a 21-year-old volunteer firefighter from Glen Rock died of a heroin overdose inside his childhood home.

Glen Rock Police Chief Frederick Stahman earlier in the year said while heroin usage is a problem all over Bergen County, it's "not a huge problem in Glen Rock."

The borough is along major thoroughfares for heroin dealing. Sections of town off reside along Route 208, which funnels into Route 4 and Route 280.

Drug markets of Paterson are less than two miles away, where buyers can purchase high quality heroin on the cheap.