A Newburgh man who allegedly was at the center of four different conspiracies to traffic firearms and narcotics through Orange County was sentenced April 21 to 12 years in state prison and five years of post-release supervision.
Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler said the defendant, Kirkland Salmon, 44, of Newburgh, pleaded guilty to first-degree criminal sale of a firearm, first-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and second- and fourth-degree conspiracy, all felonies.
Salmon was one of 26 people charged with narcotics, firearms and conspiracy offenses following a six-month investigation into illegal firearms and narcotics trafficking into Orange County.
That investigation was conducted by the Orange County Drug Task Force, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Middletown and City of Poughkeepsie police departments, state police, the Hudson Valley Crime Analysis Center and Hoovler’s office.
It was alleged in documents filed and statements made in court that the investigation showed Salmon was at the center of four different conspiracies to traffic narcotics and firearms through Orange County.
During the investigation, law enforcement officers recovered 24 firearms and one kilogram of cocaine.
On the day of the enforcement action, May 21, 2024, when most of the defendants were arrested, law enforcement officers recovered an additional 11 kilograms of cocaine, approximately 90 grams of fentanyl, seven firearms, high-capacity magazines, numerous rounds of ammunition, about $45,000 in cash, scales and packaging used in narcotics trafficking, and 11 vehicles, including the food truck Salmon used to distribute firearms and narcotics while it was parked in the City of Newburgh.
Salmon’s use of that food truck led prosecutors to dub the investigation “Operation Hot Lunch.”
The City and Town of Newburgh, Town of Woodbury, Town of Montgomery, Town of Wallkill and Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson police departments also assisted in the enforcement action on May 21, 2024.
“The significant sentence imposed on this defendant, who was a central player in the wide-ranging gun and drug conspiracy uncovered by Operation Hot Lunch, reflects the real and present danger these crimes pose to our community,” Hoovler said in a statement released by his office. “We have seen the effectiveness of dedicated, long-term investigations that are possible only through the coordinated efforts of law enforcement and prosecutors.”
The name of Salmon’s attorney was not immediately available.
Mike Randall covers breaking news for the Times Herald-Record and the Poughkeepsie Journal. Reach him at mrandall@th-record.com.
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Newburgh man sentenced for operating drug, gun ring out of food truck
Reporting by Mike Randall, Middletown Times Herald- Record / Times Herald-Record
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