MONMOUTH COUNTY – A Monmouth County woman has been charged with threatening to kill a source who was involved in an FBI investigation.
A confidential source working with law enforcement, was buying narcotics, including crack cocaine, from Richard N. Edwards Jr., of Old Bridge, police said.
One of these purchases involved Kaitlyn R. Powers, 32, of Aberdeen, where she distributed suspected narcotics to the confidential source.
On April 6, FBI agents arrested Edwards and one of his narcotics suppliers, Jamil J. Yasin of East Orange, charging each of them with possession and distribution of crack cocaine.
The following day, Powers was seen confronting and threatening the confidential source in a parking lot of a convenience store in Cliffwood Beach. She also threatened to kill the confidential source if she were to be charged with a federal crime. Powers then threatened the confidential source again two days later for assisting law enforcement’s investigation of Edwards and Yasin.
Subsequently, Powers was charged with two counts of retaliating against a witness or informant and one count of witness tampering. The charges of retaliating against a witness or informant each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The charge of witness tampering carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael Honig credited special agents of the FBI Red Bank Resident Agency, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr. in Newark, with the investigation leading to the charges. She also thanked the Matawan Police Department, under the direction of Chief of Police Thomas J. Falco Jr., for its assistance in the investigation.
The charges and allegations against the defendants are merely accusations and they are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
