Isaac Heirs Jr., 33,…
By Courtney Dentch
Two men, including a fugitive from Flushing who had been on the lam for five years, were arrested last week on federal warrants after investigators found a cache of weapons, drugs and cash in a Springfield Gardens home, police said.
Isaac Heirs Jr., 33, of Flushing, and Antoine Sheppard, 36, were arrested April 13 by members of a joint regional fugitive task force based on leads developed in North Carolina, where Heirs has been wanted since 1999 on drug charges, police said.
Heirs was being held in New York pending his return to North Carolina, where he was expected to face drug charges, police said. Sheppard remains in federal custody on weapons charges, police said.
Officers, including city cops and federal marshals, found an AK-47, two .40 caliber handguns, a .357 handgun, a 9mm handgun and a shotgun, police said. Authorities also seized 500 rounds of ammunition, 460 grams of powdered cocaine, 50 grams of crack, 1 gram of heroin and 5 grams of marijuana, police said.
Investigators also discovered police paraphernalia at the house, including two ballistic vests, an NYPD sweatshirt, an Emergency Medical Technicians shield and a police scanner. A 2003 Lexus and a 2003 Ford pickup were also seized, police said.
Sheppard was arrested as he tried to escape from a window of the Springfield Gardens house, while Heirs was later arrested in Canarsie and was allegedly in possession of cocaine, police said.
Heirs had been on the lam since an arrest in North Carolina in October 1998, police said. He was stopped for a traffic violation on I-95 and investigators allegedly found a pound of cocaine in Heirs’ pants, which they believe he was smuggling into South Carolina, said a spokeswoman for the U.S. Marshals office. Heirs made bail a few months later and fled the state, the spokeswoman said.
The New York Police Department’s Drug Enforcement Task Force, Emergency Service Unit and the Fugitive Enforcement Division participated in the raid along with the U.S. Marshals for the Southern District of New York and the Regional Fugitive Task Force, police said.
“This is a perfect example of the success that comes from multi-agency cooperation,” Police Commissioner Kelly said in a statement. “The leadership of the different teams maintained constant communication and we were all aware of each others’ next move.”
Reach reporter Courtney Dentch by e-mail at news@timesledger.com, or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 138.
