The investigation into Philip Seymour Hoffman's death has lead to the arrest of four suspected drug dealers Tuesday evening, reports say.
The arrests were made around 7 p.m. after police carried out a search warrant at a Chinatown apartment building. Police seized over 350 bags of heroin from three apartments, the New York Daily News reported. The three men and one woman arrested are suspected of supplying the heroin that caused Hoffman's death.
Hoffman, 46, was found dead in his West Village apartment on Sunday with a needle in his left arm. Over 50 bags of heroin with labels like "Ace of Spaces" and "Ace of Hearts" were retrieved in the late actor's apartment, Newsday reported. The academy award winning actor, called the greatest of his generation, was known for his roles in movies like "Boogie Nights" and "The Talented Mr. Ripley."
An informant alerted police that a drug ring was headquartered at the Mott Street apartment. Sources told the Daily News that police couldn't confirm if those arrested directly supplied Hoffman with the heroin, or if they belong to a wider drug ring.
Police arrested 48-year-old Thomas Cushman, Max Rosenblum, 22, Robert Vineberg, 57, and 22-year-old Juliana Luchkiw. All suspects except Cushman lived in the building.
"They were quiet," the building's superintendent told the Daily News. "They were not a problem."
The superintendent, who wished to be identified as Victor, said he did not know what they were really doing.
"There was a lot of people in and out all the time," Victor told the Daily News. "I didn't suspect drug traffic."
Cushman was charged with misdemeanor criminal possession of a controlled substance. Rosenblum, Vineberg and Luchkiw were charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, criminal use of drug paraphernalia and other charges involving criminal possession, Newsday reported.
Police said the Mott Street heroin did not bear the same labels that were found in Hoffman's apartment, Newsday reported.
Police also said testing of the heroin in Hoffman's apartment did not find fentanyl, a rapid pain reliever sometimes used in heroin and connected to the overdose deaths of 22 people in Pennsylvania, the Daily News reported.
All four suspects are expected to be arraigned on Wednesday, the Daily News reported.
