MIAMI – Miami police announced a drug bust and the arrest of a suspect Wednesday who they say was operating from a house in Allapattah.
According to authorities, Leonardo Ruiz, 60, is facing several charges that include armed cocaine trafficking and money laundering.
Investigators said that “unusual drug transactions” were being conducted at a house located in the 1400 block of Northwest 24th Avenue, in the middle of a family neighborhood.
Detectives said police were notified after “multiple” subjects would come to Ruiz’s house to exchange stolen goods for drugs.
A search warrant was served at the house, yielding a large quantity of narcotics, several firearms, a large amount of cash and hundreds of thousands of dollars of suspected stolen property from multiple retail stores, according to Ruiz’s arrest affidavit.
Police said a search of the home, specifically Ruiz’s bedroom, resulted in the recovery of 1,629 grams of suspected powder cocaine and multiple forms of drug paraphernalia, such as a digital weight scale, clear empty baggies and other tools that are utilized to break down larger quantities of cocaine residue into smaller qualities.
Investigators also recovered seven firearms, including two assault rifles and power tools from different retail stores that still had magnetic security sensors that were found in multiple bedrooms of his residence, the affidavit stated.
Authorities said all the recovered items that were seized by Miami police narcotics and burglary investigators were impounded into the agency’s property unit.
They also said all of the recovered cash was transported to the Drug Enforcement Administration for processing.
Miami Police Chief Manny Morales said Ruiz’s arrest is the result of an elaborate investigation conducted by the Miami Police Department and their SWAT and burglary unit.
As of Thursday, Ruiz is being held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
See what items police recovered following the raid in the video below.