PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — Two brothers have been arrested after deputies say they trafficked several different types of drugs and laundered money from the operation.
The Pasco Sheriff's Office said Marco and Fernando Maysonet were taken into custody. Marco Maysonet faces charges of trafficking hydromorphone, possession of a controlled substance, felony possession of firearms, felony possession of ammunition, trafficking hydrocodone, trafficking oxycodone and heroin possession.
Fernando Maysonet faces charges of the Florida Money Laundering Act over $100,000, trafficking hydromorphone, conspiracy to traffic hydromorphone, trafficking oxycodone, sale and possession of heroin and possession of fentanyl.
Deputies say Fernando Maysonet deposited more than $300,000 into his account during the last three years. Investigators also believe Fernando Maysonet Maysonet to have done a home invasion during that time, but deputies weren't able to prove it.
In the brothers' home, detectives said they found more than $73,000 in cash, seven guns, various types of drugs and an $18,000 ring.
Investigators said the total value of the seizures was more than $400,000.
During a Monday afternoon news conference, the sheriff's office said making arrests in the drug supply chain is like a game of "whack-a-mole." Detectives said the demand issue creates a vacuum, and others will seize the opportunity to make "a cash windfall."
Investigators also spoke of the importance of drug busts like these to combating the opioid crisis. The sheriff's office said there was an "explosion" in opioid-related overdoses and deaths in Pasco County, and the trend has continued through 2019.
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