ORLANDO, Fla.,None — There was a major FBI raid Wednesday at the Magic Mall on West Colonial Drive in Orlando (see map). WFTV learned it involves a federal cocaine and heroine case.
Five people have been arrested and charged with selling drug paraphernalia and a substance used to dilute cocaine and heroin. Agents on the scene Wednesday packed up evidence from one of the stores at the Magic Mall.
At least a dozen FBI agents conducted the raid and arrests at the mall. Customers who came there to shop for cell phones, or knockoffs, or other low-priced merchandise at the indoor flea market were not bargaining for a raid.
"There's a lot of FBI in there. I was not expecting this when I came here," customer Jason Anderson said.
Federal prosecutors say undercover agents and confidential informants bought cocaine presses and a substance called "cut," commonly used to "cut" or dilute heroin and cocaine. They say the defendants believed the goods they sold would be used in the drug trade.
The store that was raided at the Magic Mall sold itself as a vitamin store, but one employee told WFTV no drugs were being sold there.
Five defendants were arrested; one is from Altamonte Springs, three are from Orlando, and one is from Tampa. Two of the suspects are originally from Lebanon and one is from Jordan.
Initially, the Metro PCS store was also blocked off with police tape, but the store has since reopened and it's unclear what involvement, if any, the store has to the drug case.
The vendors at the mall can be fairly transient; they rent month to month. The five defendants are scheduled to be in federal court Thursday; it's unknown if the suspects are in the country legally.
The suspects arrested are Michael Khalil El Annan (33, of Altamonte Springs), Walid Hafez Khoury (57, of Orlando), Ali Abdul-Amir Joumaa (28, of Orlando), Bassem Ali Hatoum ( 34, of Tampa), and Haidr Darweesh Shilleh (38, of Orlando), on charges of conspiracy to aid and abet the manufacturing of cocaine and heroin, aiding and abetting the manufacture of cocaine and heroin, and sale of drug paraphernalia.
If convicted on all counts, each defendant faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison.
WFTV
