In addition to 6,239 bags of heroin, investigators confiscated more than $10,900 in cash and 80 rounds of ammunition from the apartment that Katherine Carmona-Ortiz shared with her grandmother, a prosecutor said.
SPRINGFIELD - A Springfield woman charged with running a heroin trafficking operation from an apartment across the street from police headquarters is free on $5,000 cash bail.
Katherine Carmona-Ortiz, 24, pleaded not guilty in Springfield District Court Friday to six charges, including distributing heroin and trafficking 100 to 200 grams of heroin.
Carmona-Ortiz was arrested at 103 Pearl St. after allegedly selling 10 bags of "Hard Ball" heroin to an undercover Springfield police officer. A search of the defendant's second-floor apartment turned up another 6,239 bags, or approximately 125 grams of heroin, according to the arrest report.
Assistant District Attorney Cary Szafranski asked for $25,000 bail, citing the quantity of drugs seized and the potential prison sentence the defendant faces if convicted.
In addition to the heroin, investigators found more than $10,900 in cash and 80 rounds of ammunition in the apartment that Carmona-Ortiz shares with her 70-year-old grandmother, the prosecutor said. The apartment is in a four-story brick building across from police headquarters at 130 Pearl St.
Defense lawyer Daniel Bergin requested $5,000 bail, the same amount Carmona-Ortiz posted at police headquarters after her arrest.
Judge John Payne set bail at $5,000, and continued the case for a pretrial hearing Feb. 26.
A second suspect, Matthew Headley, 22, of Springfield, was also arrested on heroin distribution and related charges after allegedly arranging the meeting between Carmona-Ortiz and the undercover officer.
Headley pleaded not guilty to the charges. No information on his bail was available. Investigators believe Headley was buying heroin from Carmona-Ortiz and re-selling it, police spokesman Ryan Walsh said.