Bradenton man accused of trafficking cocaine after SWAT raid, deputies say
A Bradenton man is accused of trafficking cocaine after detectives said raids at homes in Bradenton and Sarasota turned up hundreds of grams of the drug.
Deputies said they arrested 44-year-old Andres R. Gonzalez on Sept. 11 when the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, with help from the Drug Enforcement Administration, searched his home on 60th Drive East. His arrest came after Sarasota County deputies said they caught him in an undercover sting earlier this summer, which led to the warrant and a broader multiagency investigation.
According to the sheriff’s office, the warrant charged Gonzalez with trafficking in cocaine, a first-degree felony under Florida law, for selling or possessing more than 28 grams. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of three years in prison and up to 30 years, along with a $50,000 fine.
Gonzalez was booked into the Manatee County Jail, where records show he was released Sept. 15.
According to an arrest report, the undercover deal happened on July 2, when Gonzalez sold 57 grams of cocaine to a detective for $1,800 in a Sarasota parking lot. The transaction was audio and video recorded, and the drugs later tested positive for cocaine, according to an arrest report.
That buy led detectives to obtain search warrants for both his Bradenton home and a house on Lake Ridge Drive in Sarasota, according to the sheriff’s office. While deputies arrested Gonzalez in Bradenton, Sarasota deputies and a SWAT team searched the Sarasota address with help from Sarasota police, the agency said.
Detectives reported finding nearly 300 grams of cocaine inside the Sarasota home, the sheriff’s office said.
The case remains open, according to the sheriff’s office.
