It was a family affair.
Forty-eight people were charged on a 78-count indictment this week in connection to a massive West Harlem drug-trafficking ring — including three siblings and their mother, and a father and son, according to sources and court papers.
The crew operated on the “most violent” street in Manhattan and often recruited teens to carry out sales, prosecutors said.
The crew — dubbed “Main Event” and operated by ringleader Andrew McFaline — included many of the members related by birth or marriage, according to prosecutors.
The indictments stemmed from an investigation into the trafficking of narcotics — primarily crack cocaine — dating back to January 2019 in a section of the neighborhood, roughly on 135th and 136th streets between Amsterdam Avenue and Riverside Drive, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
The organization often recruited teens as young as 15 to carry out narcotics sales and other acts of violence, the DA’s office said.
Three members, brothers Christopher and Ruben Harvis as well as Jesus Pizzini were indicted in connection to a violent stabbing in July 2020, during a dispute over narcotics territory, prosecutors said.
Cops found more than $4,000 in cash and 674 vials of crack in their car during the arrest, according to the DA’s office.
The Harvis brothers managed one customer line on 135th Street from Amsterdam to Broadway, while Jesus Pizzini, Miguel Cotto, Jerelle Dunn, Daniel Marquis Velazquez and Jordan Torres each served as managers of their own set locations, prosecutors said.
The brothers’ mom, Magdalena Diaz, allegedly arranged illegal sublets for their illicit business, while their sister, Sharise Harvis, helped monitor the cocaine supply, according to the indictment. Pizzini’s son, Patrick, is charged with operating as a major drug trafficker and other crimes, court papers state.
“As alleged, these individuals operated a 24/7 drug trafficking ring in an area of West Harlem plagued by narcotics-driven violence and drug-related overdoses,” DA Cyrus Vance said in a statement. “In fact, just a single block of their operating territory, West 135th Street between Broadway and Riverside Drive, was recently classified by the NYPD as the most violent in Manhattan, fueled in no small part by this highly structured criminal organization.”
Two members, Reynor Sanchez and Jayden Hernandez, were allegedly involved in a July 2020 shooting in which they fired two shots from a .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol at a rival.
Two 2019 confirmed fatal overdoses stemmed from sales by the organization, according to prosecutors.
More than $100,000 in cash has been seized, through various arrests, in the course of the investigation, Assistant District Attorney Kaitrin Roberts said.
McFaline divided the operation into six set locations, each led by managers who operated customer lines, employed street-level dealers, cooks, drivers, people who worked security and other associates, the DA’s office said.
Wiretaps conducted throughout the investigation indicated that the defendants sold drugs 24 hours a day — and at times sold $10,000 worth of narcotics in a couple hours, Roberts said.
Some of those indicted discussed their alleged dealings via social media and text messages — including videos and photos showing stashes of cash, diamond-encrusted jewelry and firearms, prosecutors said.
On at least one occasion, they talked shop in calls made from state prison.
All of the defendants were charged with conspiracy in the fourth degree and others face additional counts ranging from second-degree attempted murder and operating as a major trafficker.
Justice Ruth Pickholz ordered McFaline held without bail. Christopher Harvis was ordered held on $500,000 cash while his brother, Ruben, is awaiting arraignment.
Christopher Harvis’ lawyer, Mitchell Elman, declined to comment.
