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Police bust suspects smuggling hundreds of pounds of weed, ecstasy over Blue Water Bridge

By Jack Nissen
Published  August 22, 2022 2:11pm EDT
Crime and Public Safety
FOX 2 Detroit
article

Manraj Singh (right), Mason Hernandez, James Haynie, and Devin Bruemmer

COLUMBUS TOWNSHIP, Mich. (FOX 2) - A lengthy investigation into drug smuggling in St. Clair County has led to four men being arrested and the seizure of hundreds of pounds of drugs and tens of thousands of dollars.

The St. Clair County Drug Task Force made took the men into custody while they were in the act of transporting suspected narcotics from a delivery truck that had crossed the Blue Water Bridge into a smaller van.

The suspected truck had been under surveillance by police when it was detected crossing into the U.S. on Aug. 18, before leading authorities to the transfer of 348 pounds of pot and 24 pounds of ecstasy.

According to a release from the St. Clair County Sheriff, law enforcement from the drug task force observed the semi-truck cross the bridge then park at a closed business on Gratiot Avenue in Columbus Township. The semi-truck then backed up to a van where the transfer happened.  

While officers were at the scene, a second suspect van arrived from the city of Detroit, where it was also stopped and the driver was arrested. After that, a search warrant was obtained for a home in the city of Detroit, where money, firearms, and ammunition was recovered. 

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The estimated street value of everything police seized is approximately $1 million.

Four men were taken into custody:

  • Manraj Singh - charged with controlled substance delivery of ecstasy, controlled substance delivery of marijuana over 45 kilos, and maintaining a drug house
  • Mason Hernandez - charged with controlled substance delivery of ecstasy, controlled substance delivery of marijuana over 45 kilos, and maintaining a drug house
  • James Haynie - Conspiracy to commit controlled substance delivery, conspiracy to commit controlled substance delivery of marijuana over 45 kilos, maintaining a drug house, felony firearm
  •  Devin Bruemmer - Conspiracy to commit controlled substance delivery, conspiracy to commit controlled substance delivery of marijuana over 45 kilos, maintaining a drug house

All four men were given $50,000 bond. 

State police, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Border Patrol K-9, and Homeland Security Investigation's border unit all assisted in the operation.