One day after the Lyndhurst police arrested a man for heroin distribution-related offenses, officers arrested his girlfriend during an alleged drug transaction in which their young daughter was in attendance. As a result, the woman is now facing charges for endangering the welfare of a child and conspiracy to distribute a controlled dangerous substance.

According to James O’Connor, the chief of the Lyndhurst Police Department, 27-year-old Anthony Chaljub was arrested on Wednesday, April 23^rd near the Roosevelt School in Lyndhurst. He is now facing charges for possession of heroin with the intent to distribute and intent to distribute near or on school property.

The following day, Chaljub’s girlfriend, 35-year-old Newark resident Jennifer Rivera, was arrested during an alleged drug deal involving three others. At approximately 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 24^th, officers stopped the vehicle in which the alleged transaction occurred in the 500 block of Ridge Road in Lyndhurst.

51-year-old Francis P. Moyna, 27-year-old Bloomfield resident Lauren Desiderio, 33-year-old Newark resident Ricky Pacheco, and Rivera were in the car at the time, in addition to Rivera’s 2-year-old daughter, who was not secured in a car seat. All of the aforementioned individuals are believed to have participated in the drug deal are were subsequently arrested, while the young girl was taken into state custody.

Rivera is now facing charges for endangering the welfare of a child and conspiracy to distribute a controlled dangerous substance. She is currently being held at the Bergen County Jail, with her bail set at $50,000. Desiderio, whose bail is also set at $50,000, was charged with the aforementioned offenses, in addition to possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a hypodermic syringe.

Pacheco is facing charges including possession and distribution of heroin, distribution of CDS near or on school property, and endangering the welfare of a child. Both Chaljub and Pacheco were being held at the Bergen County Jail, with bails set at $75,000 each.

Per police reports, the officers stopped the vehicle after witnessing Moyna get in and noticing that the child was not in a car seat. They identified Moyna as a “known drug user” before the stop. The circumstances in this case bring about questions of the validity of the motor vehicle stop and the subsequent search.

Under the law, if an illegal search is conducted, any evidence obtained during said search is inadmissible in court, which significantly impacts the state’s case against a defendant. For more information, view Part 5 of my series on “How to Beat Drug Charges,” entitled “Challenging Illegal Searches.” Also view my video on “Challenging the Motor Vehicle Stop,” which is an effective defense tactic in certain drug-related cases.

To access additional information pertaining to this case, see the following article: Lyndhurst police say woman brought girl, 2, to heroin deal