A pound of crystal meth was recovered by police in a room at a Staten Island hotel that has been converted into emergency housing for migrants, according to sources.
The drugs, which were stuffed inside a black bag, were first spotted by a worker at the Ramada Inn on North Gannon Avenue around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, law enforcement sources told The Post.
An asylum seeker had resided in the room where the meth was located, sources said, but no one was there at the time of the discovery.
Police are investigating how the drugs ended up at the hotel and who brought them there.
The hotel was turned into a 35-unit shelter to house incoming migrants on May 4, according to local politicians who decried the transformation.
“So long as the City is forced to continue spending taxpayer dollars to harbor illegal immigrants while cutting services for our own citizens in need, there is no light at the end of the tunnel,” Borough President Vito Fossella and Rep. Nicole Malliotakis said in a joint statement at the time.
“It currently costs taxpayers $93,000 for each family housed in these units, which is more than many Staten Islanders make in one year,” the statement said.
It’s unclear if the Ramada, which is located in Willowbrook near the College of Staten Island’s campus, has rooms available to the public. However, an online booking calendar shows the earliest available vacancy is Jan. 10, 2024.
nypost.com/2023/10/05/nypd-recovers-pound-of-meth-from-nyc-hotel-turned-migrant-center/
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