A Bloomfield man suspected of buying heroin in Newark was arraigned today, following his arrest on Sunday afternoon by Essex County sheriff’s officers.  

According to the police report, Alberto Pell, 56, of Bloomfield, Hassan Burgess, 18, of Newark, and Rashaan Wright, 32, from East Orange were arrested in Newark after plainclothes detectives witnessed multiple narcotics transactions near the intersection of North 12^th Street and 4^th Avenue.  At the time of the arrest, Burgess was found to be in possession of a fully loaded, .380 caliber, Highpoint semi-automatic handgun with a defaced serial number.  

At Tuesday’s arraignment in criminal Central Judicial Processing court, Judge Roslyn Holmes–Grant ordered Burgess held at the Essex County Correctional Facility in lieu of $85,000 cash bond only.  Bail was set at $30,000 each for Pell and Wright.

According to the Essex County sheriff’s office, Pell had 12 glassine envelopes containing heroin in his possession at the time of his arrest, while Burgess was holding nine glassine envelopes of heroin and the handgun.  Twenty additional bags of heroin and 15 bags of crack cocaine were found behind the vinyl siding of an abandoned building in the alley where the men were allegedly conducting the transactions.

Pell and Wright were each charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance, with Pell also found to be the subject of an open warrant issued by the Newark municipal court.  Burgess was charged with possession of a controlled dangerous substance, as well as the sale of a controlled dangerous substance, possession of a controlled dangerous substance with intent to distribute, the unlawful possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon while committing a controlled dangerous substance, and possession of a defaced firearm.