Dozens indicted in historic drug bust in Philly's Kensington neighborhood

More than 30 people were charged in a historic indictment against a massive drug trafficking organization in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood, the FBI revealed.

On Friday, Oct. 24, FBI Director Kash Patel, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel and U.S. Attorney David Metcalf announced that 33 alleged members of the Weymouth Street Drug Trafficking Organization were charged with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and dozens of related offenses.

“Today, even more criminals are off the streets because of the diligent work of the FBI and our partners,” Patel said. “Over 30 people have been charged for their alleged role in drug trafficking and dozens of other offenses. These individuals were charged with distributing fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine on one of the most prolific drug blocks in Philadelphia. They were members of a violent drug trafficking organization and used violence to enforce their territory and sell drugs that poison our city streets and community. The FBI will continue our work to put an end to drug trafficking and violence in our cities.”

SkyForce10 was over the scene Friday morning near Clearfield and Potter streets as police officers and FBI officials raided several homes in the area. Some law enforcement officials were spotted carrying out several boxes from a home.

During a press conference Friday afternoon, law enforcement officials revealed the raids were part of the largest federal indictment from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania this century.

“This case involves 33 defendants and it’s a massive drug trafficking conspiracy spanning nearly a decade, involving tremendous volumes of fentanyl and narcotics and it took place at the epicenter of the opioid crisis here, in the Kensington neighborhood,” said Metcalf.

Dozens of guns were seized during the raids, along with drugs, including fentanyl and cocaine, officials said.

Of the 33 defendants, 24 of them were arrested on Friday, eight of them were already in state or federal custody and only one remains at large.

What we know about the Weymouth Street Drug Trafficking Organization

According to the indictment, between January 2016 and October 2025, the Weymouth Street Drug Trafficking Organization (Weymouth DTO) distributed fentanyl, heroin, crack cocaine and cocaine on the 3100 block of Weymouth Street, described by officials as “one of the most prolific drug blocks in the city.”

The area is an open-air drug market where illegal narcotics are sold every day and at all hours, officials said.

According to city data, since 2016, more than 7,000 crimes have been reported in a two and a half block radius of Weymouth Street with more than a third of those incidents being narcotics and drug violations. Other incidents in the area included assault, theft, weapons violations and aggravated assault with a firearm.

While the 3100 block of Weymouth Street served as the nucleus for the group’s activities, they also extended their operations to the corner of F Street and Clementine Street, the corner of E Street and Wishart Street and 3000 Potter Street, investigators said.

According to the indictment, Weymouth DTO used violence — including shootings, murders and physical attacks — to enforce their territory. The members retaliated against any witnesses they believed provided information to law enforcement, investigators said. They also attacked rival drug trafficking organizations, according to the indictment.

Investigators identified 45-year-old Jose Antonio Morales Nieves, also known as “Flaco,” of Luquillo, Puerto Rico, as a leader in the organization who authorized other Weymouth DTO members to sell drugs on his block in exchange for “rent.” Morales Nieves helped protect the members by threatening violence against anyone who threatened the organization and their business, according to the indictment.

The indictment also named 40-year-old Ramon Roman-Montanez, also known as “Viejo,” of Philadelphia, as another leader in the organization who managed the street-level operations. According to investigators, Roman-Montanez organized the schedules and shifts for the drug dealers within the organization. He also managed proceeds and obtained more drugs, officials said.

The indictment also named 33-year-old Nancy Rios-Valentin of Philadelphia, as another leader of the organization responsible for scheduling the drug dealing shifts and managing the proceeds.

Nearly all of the defendants who are not currently incarcerated are from Philadelphia. The three exceptions are Nieves, who is from Luquillo, Puerto Rico, a defendant from Wilmington, Delaware, and a defendant from Millville, New Jersey.

Additionally, during the press conference, officials shared photos of the individuals indicted.

The investigation was part of PSN Recon, a criminal intelligence program that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania launched this year. The program is a collaboration between federal and state law enforcement to identify the most violent and dangerous individuals in Philadelphia, officials said. Officials also said the program builds on the mission of the Department of Justice’s Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) initiative.

“Today’s actions were the culmination of a deliberate, patient, and highly coordinated investigation into a violent criminal enterprise operating on and around Weymouth Street in Kensington,” said Philadelphia Police Commissioner Bethel. “This group pumped fentanyl into a community already hurting, and they used violence to protect their business. Thank you to our state and federal partners who continue to show up in Philadelphia not as visitors but as teammates: FBI Director Patel, U.S. Attorney Metcalf, FBI Philly SAC Jacobs and his team, the DEA, the Attorney General’s Office, and to our own DC Jim Kelly and the men and women of the Philadelphia Police Department’s Narcotics Bureau who did the hard work to get us here. This is One Philly in action – exactly the model Mayor Parker has demanded from day one: not turf battles, not silos, but agencies standing shoulder-to-shoulder around a single mission: protecting the people of this city.”