TRENTON – Acting Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin announced that a Camden County woman was sentenced to prison today in connection with her trial conviction for possessing and intending to distribute approximately 840 grams of the dangerous hallucinogen PCP. The New Jersey State Police seized the drugs, equal to more than 80,000 individual doses, at the home of a co-defendant in Camden in July, 2013.

Dalia Figueroa, 38, of Cherry Hill, N.J., was sentenced Thursday to 13 years in state prison by Superior Court Judge Kurt E. Kramer in Camden County.  Figueroa was found guilty at retrial on Oct. 4, 2019 by a Camden County jury of first-degree possession with intent to distribute, second-degree conspiracy, second-degree possession of PCP with intent to distribute within 500 feet of a public park, and third-degree and possession of PCP with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school.

“PCP is a hallucinogen that can cause violent or self-destructive behavior,” said Acting Attorney General Platkin. “This prosecution sends the message that we will not tolerate those who are willing to profit by selling drugs that destroy lives.”

“I commend our trial team and the detectives of the New Jersey State Police whose vigilance led to the seizure of this shipment of PCP,” said Director Lyndsay V. Ruotolo of the Division of Criminal Justice. “Through this investigation and prosecution, we stopped a large quantity of this substance from entering the community.”

“Drugs trafficking can directly contribute to crime and violence in a community, especially PCP, which can be dangerous to its users and those around them because of its unpredictably volatile effects,” said Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police. “This sentence is the product of our troopers and partners who continuously work together to target and remove drug dealers from our streets.”

During the investigation, detectives of the New Jersey State Police Crime Suppression South Unit developed information about a suspected shipment of drugs being sent from California to a residence on South 8^th Street in Camden.  The State Police conducted surveillance at the address on July 3, 2013, when the package was delivered by UPS.  Detectives immediately questioned the resident who accepted the package, Tracy Murphy, 55, of Camden, NJ. With her consent, they opened the package and found approximately 840 grams of PCP. The investigation revealed that Murphy agreed to permit Figueroa to have the drugs shipped to her home. Figueroa was arrested a short time later when she came to the house and picked up the package, which had been resealed.  Detectives found an additional 9 grams of PCP in Figueroa’s car.

Murphy pleaded guilty previously to possession of PCP with intent to distribute within 1,000 feet of a school and was sentenced to probation.

Deputy Attorney General Veronica Vizzard and SDAG Cassandra Montalto tried the case for the Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau, under the supervision of Bureau Chief Lauren Scarpa Yfantis, and DCJ Deputy Director Annmarie Taggart. They were assisted at trial by Analyst Kimberly Benjamin.

Acting Attorney General Platkin commended the prosecution team in the Division of Criminal Justice and the detectives who investigated the case for the New Jersey State Police Crime Suppression South Unit.  He also thanked the Camden County Police Department for their assistance.

Defense Attorneys:
For Figueroa: Wayne Powell, Esq., Cherry Hill, N.J.
For Murphy: Cori Lehrfeld, Esq., Gigliotti & Lehrfeld, LLC, Cherry Hill, N.J.

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