Suffolk DA Indicts 18 Alleged Riverhead Gang Members on 57 Counts

Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced a sweeping 57-count indictment Thursday charging 18 alleged members and associates of a Riverhead-based street gang identified in court papers as the "48 Gang," the culmination of a multi-agency investigation that stretched across three counties and dismantled what prosecutors describe as a cocaine trafficking network anchored to a residential street in Riverside.

Throughout the investigation, 18 search warrants were executed across Suffolk County, Nassau County, and Queens County, targeting five separate residences and 12 separate vehicles. Recovered from those locations was over 14 ounces of cocaine, over 100 pounds of illegal cannabis, eight operable firearms, ammunition, over $170,000 in cash, and drug paraphernalia including a kilo press, scales, dilutants used in the manufacturing of crack cocaine, and packaging consistent with narcotics distribution.

Prosecutors say a modest house on Brown Street in Riverside doubled as a round-the-clock open-air drug market. Members of law enforcement surveilled the home and observed individuals walking up the driveway and into the yard to allegedly purchase narcotics from several of the people indicted. An undercover detective with the District Attorney's Fentanyl Task Force purchased cocaine at the home on 26 different occasions from several members of the organization.

Prosecutors identified Robert E. "Boy" Love, 71, of Riverhead, as the alleged head of the operation. Love was previously arrested in 2012 after being accused of leading a Bronx-to-Riverhead cocaine trafficking ring.

On July 11, 2025, Love was among the defendants arraigned on the indictment before Supreme Court Justice John B. Collins. He faces charges of Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the First Degree and Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the First Degree, both Class A felonies; Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree and Conspiracy in the Second Degree, both Class B felonies; and Criminally Using Drug Paraphernalia in the Second Degree, a Class A misdemeanor. Justice Collins ordered Love held on $2,500,000 cash, $5,000,000 bond, or $5,000,000 partially secured bond during the pendency of the case. Love is due back in court on August 27 and faces up to 25 years to life in prison if convicted of the top count.

The indictment was the result of a joint investigation conducted by the Suffolk County District Attorney's East End Drug Task Force along with members of the Suffolk County Police Department, the Suffolk County Sheriff's Office, the New York State Police, the Southampton Town Police Department, the Riverhead Town Police Department, the Southampton Village Police Department, the East Hampton Town Police Department, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Gang Violence Task Force, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Fentanyl Task Force, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Freeport Police Department.

Riverhead Town Police Department Chief Ed Frost credited the partnership as essential to the outcome. "We thank the District Attorney's Office for its tireless efforts and unwavering partnership with our police department," Frost said. "Together, we remain committed to our shared goal of holding accountable those who peddle poison in our community and threaten the safety and well-being of our residents."

DEA New York Special Agent in Charge Frank Tarentino also praised the effort: "The indictment against Robert Love and his family-run drug trafficking operation is the result of the relentless efforts by DEA New York and our law enforcement partners in targeting those responsible for poisoning our communities with narcotics. This investigation, which resulted in the seizure of cocaine, illegal firearms, as well as other illicit narcotics, has significantly disrupted a source of violence and harm posed to Long Island's East End."

DA Tierney said the case reflects a broader enforcement priority. "This investigation demonstrates our unwavering commitment to dismantling drug trafficking operations that spew poison into our communities," Tierney said. "The defendants in this case allegedly turned a residential neighborhood into an open-air drug market, bringing violence and addiction to the doorsteps of Suffolk County families."

The full list of all 18 defendants and the specific counts charged against each has not yet been released publicly. A criminal charge is an accusation; all defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.