POUGHKEEPSIE – Members of the Dutchess County Drug Task Force seized two guns and drugs during the execution of a search warrant on January 4, 2024, in Hyde Park. The raid also resulted in the arrest of two Hyde Park residents on felony charges.
According to task force Detective Sergeant Adam Harris, his agents, assisted by the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office ESU and Hyde Park Police executed a search at a Wagon Wheel Road residence after an investigation into illegal drug sales. During the search, 30-year-old Terrance Warren and Bryant Rojas-Hill, 31, were arrested.
Warren was charged with the felonies of criminal possession of a controlled substance and criminal possession of a weapon. Following arraignment, he was remanded to the Dutchess County Jail. Rojas-Hill was found in possession of a loaded illegal handgun. He was charged with felony criminal possession of a firearm, arraigned, and released to the supervision of Dutchess County Probation.
“The Dutchess County Drug Task Force regularly conducts investigations into narcotic drug sales,” said task force leader Harris. “We actively investigate criminals who are preying on our community’s most vulnerable, those suffering from addiction, and we are focused on bringing those illegal actors to justice while protecting those who live, work, and visit Dutchess County.”
Harris pointed out that in many instances, the illegal drug dealers are also armed with guns, making them even more dangerous to the community at large. “Firearms in the hands of criminals pose a risk to law enforcement and everyone in the community. If we discover those weapons during an investigation, we’re going to seize those as well. We are working to make Dutchess County a safer place.”
District Attorney Anthony Parisi, whose office oversees the task force, is seeking to add additional manpower to the group, with the help of the county legislature. Parisi cited the need for funding for an additional investigator and newly-elected Legislature Chairman Will Truitt has agreed to look into the funding, citing a need to improve public safety.
“Combatting the opioid epidemic is a top priority for the Dutchess County District Attorney’s Office,” Parisi said. “In years past, our county has led the entire state in overdose deaths per capita and unfortunately 2023 appears to be no different. As of December 1, 2023, 92 people in Dutchess County have died from a drug overdose and there have been more than 300 non-fatal overdoses.”
Parisi plans to work with the task force and the local law enforcement agencies to combat the opioid epidemic. “Opioid peddlers who are taking advantage of our most vulnerable populations, our addicts and our children, should be on notice that we will utilize every available resource to remove this poison from the streets of Dutchess County.”
