WYNNEFIELD (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said investigators busted a drug ring operating out of a West Philadelphia convenience store, arresting two men and seizing drugs, guns and cash.
The two men, arrested on drug charges, are 26-year-old Noel Simmons and 32-year-old Sharif Coleman. Simmons’ bail was set at $750,000 and Coleman is being held on a $100,000 bail.
Officials said the case was sparked by a nuisance complaint made by the office of City Council Majority Leader Katherine Gilmore Richardson against one of the convenience stores where authorities say drug sales took place.
That store is Smiley’s Lucky Star on 54th Street in Wynnefield, near Arlington Street. It’s a block north of Mann Elementary School.
Assistant District Attorney Keion Cook said the tip initiated an undercover operation, where authorities learned Simmons and Coleman would use the store and another called Alex Grocery as locations to meet customers.
“They would meet potential buyers outside of the store, or rather, you can call them at home, and they will come over to the store,” said Cook. “Then the transaction will happen in the store, away from their eyes, away from the eyes of the public.”
Police said the stores were the setting for the drug deals, but not involved directly in the sales. They also said Simmons and Coleman would sell contraband stored inside of school composition books.
After the investigation, search warrants were executed on the defendant’s residences, and authorities found approximately $30,000 worth of marijuana, $500 worth of crack cocaine, and a massive arsenal of weapons and ammo. The weapons included several assault rifles and handguns. One of the handguns was outfitted with a switch, which makes it an automatic weapon, and another was reported stolen out of Southwest Philadelphia last year. The ammo found included several extended clips for handguns and assault rifles and a drum for the latter.
Krasner said the case focused not on quick arrests or a long, drawn-out investigation, but improving the lives of residents.
“This is the kind of work that can get done fairly quickly,” he said. “It has a tremendous effect on the surrounding businesses, on customers who would like to access those businesses, on neighbors in these areas who are trying to raise kids and do not want their kids to be surrounded by an environment of drug purchasers and drug sellers and the violence that necessarily comes with an illegal drug trade.”