Police Say Men Were Trafficking Counterfeit Cocaine

[matcom]

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ORLANDO, Fla. -- Even criminals can't trust other criminals. Police arrested two men for trafficking what they thought was thousands of dollars in cocaine, but it turned out the coke was counterfeit.

Police got a tip that a certain silver car was loaded with drugs. They pulled the driver over at a gas station on Sand Lake Road near I-Drive. They found out later, the men were trying to pull a fast one on other criminals. It's something the suspects apparently did all the time.

When police first opened the trunk, even they thought the drugs looked real. The five neatly wrapped bricks resembled thousands of dollars worth of cocaine, but looks can be deceiving.

Police said 34-year-old Frederick McGregor and 24-year-old Antonio Fontes had a good scam going. They were planning to sell the bricks for $16,000 each. But their so-called drug customers wouldn't be too happy, because when investigators tested the cocaine, it came back counterfeit.

Police said it happens frequently. Drug dealers will sell either phony drugs or will cut the material with a different substance. It's part of the reason, they said, drug deals turn so violent; criminals constantly take advantage of each other.

While their product might've been fake, police said, Fontes and McGregor will face real charges. They're both charged with possession of a counterfeit substance with an intent to sell and conspiracy to traffic cocaine.

The men could also serve real time. They're both being held in the Orange County jail on $250,000 bond.

http://www.wftv.com/irresistible/13458457/detail.html