Troop K Community Stabilization Unit Seizes Heroin, Cocaine During I-684 Traffic Stop

On February 10, 2026, at approximately 12:55 p.m., members of the Troop K Community Stabilization Unit, while assigned to the District Attorney’s Safer Highway Initiative (DASH), observed a vehicle traveling northbound on Interstate 684 in the Town of Southeast in violation of the New York State Vehicle and Traffic Law.

The driver and sole occupant was identified as Manuel De Jesus Genao Gutierrez, 38, of Queens, New York.

A consent search of the vehicle was granted by Gutierrez, during which troopers located a hidden compartment. State Police K-9 Vinn conducted an exterior scan of the vehicle, which resulted in a positive alert for the presence of narcotics.

The hidden compartment yielded more than 1,800 glassine envelopes containing approximately 58.1 grams of heroin; a vacuum-sealed plastic bag and numerous glass containers, together containing approximately 128.2 grams of cocaine; and approximately $24,000 in cash.

Gutierrez was arrested and charged with the following:

• Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance 2^nd, a class A-II felony
• Two counts of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance 3^rd (intent to sell), a class B felony
• Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance, a class B felony
• Aggravated Unlicensed Operation 2^nd, an unclassified misdemeanor

Gutierrez was arraigned in the Town of Carmel Court and remanded to the Putnam County Jail.