N.J. man shot by troopers during drug sting admits to dealing crystal meth

N.J. man shot by troopers during drug sting admits he's a meth dealer Man who was shot by troopers during sting admits to dealing meth

MOUNT HOLLY -- A Pemberton Township man who was shot by state police after he struck two troopers with his vehicle during a 2014 drug sting has admitted to dealing crystal meth.

The state Attorney General's office said Juan Gutierrez-Valencia, 25, pleaded guilty Tuesday to first-degree possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute, second-degree unlawful possession of a handgun and fourth-degree obstructing the administration of law charges in Burlington County Superior Court.

The charges stem from the state police and federal Drug Enforcement Administration's "Operation Speed Racer" investigation into meth and heroin distribution networks in Burlington and Ocean counties.

Gutierrez-Valencia admitted he met up with an undercover detective at a Mount Laurel hotel on July 7, 2014 with the intention of selling him 2 kilograms of crystal meth. 

When the detective spotted the drugs and got out of Gutierrez-Valencia's vehicle to signal the state police's TEAMS Unit to swoop in and make the arrest, Gutierrez-Valencia fled. He hit and injured two state troopers with his vehicle in his escape attempt, spurring a third to fire a shot that struck Gutierrez-Valencia's arm. 

Police also found a stolen 9mm handgun in Gutierrez-Valencia's vehicle after he was taken into custody. 

The Attorney General's Office said the police-involved shooting spurred an investigation by its Shooting Response Team, which deemed it a justified use of force. 

The state will seek to put Gutierrez-Valencia away in prison for 10 years, with 3 1/2 years of parole ineligibility, when he is sentenced on April 1. 

Gutierrez-Valencia's guilty plea was the fifth to stem from Operation Speed Racer after four men from New Egypt and North Hanover -- who aren't connected to Gutierrez-Valencia -- admitted last week they attempted to sell $130,000 of black tar heroin to an undercover detective. 

New Egypt men Guadalupe Madrigal-Mejia, 36, Juan Mendez, 48, and Antonio Esqueda, 34, were arrested alongside a North Hanover man, 31-year-old Elias Corona-Sanchez, at a New Egypt home shared by three of the men on the day after Gutierrez-Valencia's arrest. 

Madrigal-Mejia and Corona-Sanchez admitted in court on Jan. 11 that they arranged to sell two kilos of the heroin, supplied by Mendez, for $65,000 each to an undercover detective.

After the detective saw the drugs in the home, authorities moved in and discovered Mendez in a vehicle outside as well as a stash of cocaine in Esqueda's bedroom. 

Cocaine distribution materials were discovered throughout the Jacobstown Road home. 

Both Madrigal-Mejia, also known as "Lupe," and Corona-Sanchez, also known as "Peligro," pleaded guilty to a first-degree heroin distribution charge, and the state will recommend each serve 10 years in state prison.

Mendez pleaded guilty to second-degree possession of heroin with the intent to distribute, and the state is seeking a sentence of 7 years in state prison. Esqueda pleaded guilty to third-degree possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute and is facing five years in state prison. 

All four are scheduled to be sentenced on April 15.