District Attorney Hoovler Detail Prison Sentence for Operation Hot Lunch Defendant
Russell Knight Previously Pled Guilty to Narcotics and Conspiracy Charges
Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler announced on Monday, March 3, 2025, Russell Knight, age 46, of Newburgh, was sentenced by the Honorable Craig Stephen Brown in Orange County Court to an aggregate term of five (5) to ten (10) years in prison to be followed by three (3) years of post-release supervision relative to his previous pleas of guilty to Conspiracy in the Second Degree and Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree.
The case was the result of the coordinated efforts of numerous law enforcement agencies who conducted an enforcement action after a long-term investigation into firearm and narcotics trafficking in Orange County. The operation, code named “Hot Lunch”, resulted in the arrests of twenty-six (26) people charged with narcotics, firearm and conspiracy offenses.
A six (6) month long intensive investigation into illegal firearms and narcotics trafficking in Orange County was conducted by the Orange County Drug Task Force (OCDTF), the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, together with the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, the City of Middletown Police Department, New York State Police, the City of Poughkeepsie Police Department, and the Hudson Valley Crime Analysis Center. As alleged in documents filed and statements made in court, the investigation revealed that Kirkland Salmon was at the center of four different conspiracies to traffic narcotics and firearms through Orange County. Salmon was supplied with quantities of cocaine by two different narcotics suppliers, Owen Beckford a/k/a Marvin Ottley and Joshua Arnold, to distribute from his food truck parked in the City of Newburgh. Salmon was also supplied with firearms to resell in Orange County by Andre Smith. Over the course of the investigation, law enforcement learned of Beckford’s and Arnold’s narcotics distribution organizations, both of which distributed cocaine in the City of Newburgh and elsewhere in Orange County. During the investigation, law enforcement recovered twenty-four (24) firearms and one (1) kilogram of cocaine. On the day of the enforcement action on May 21, 2024, police additionally recovered over eleven (11) kilograms of cocaine, approximately ninety (90) grams of fentanyl, seven (7) guns, high-capacity magazines, numerous rounds of ammunition, approximately $45,000 of US currency, scales and packaging materials used in narcotics trafficking and ten (10) vehicles that were instrumentalities of the crimes charged. Additionally, law enforcement seized one food truck.
At the plea proceedings, Knight admitted to participating in Beckford’s conspiracy to distribute narcotics, as well as selling cocaine to another individual.
District Attorney Hoovler thanked the agencies involved in the investigation, as well as the following agencies who assisted in the enforcement action on May 21, 2024: City of Newburgh Police Department; Town of Newburgh Police Department; Town of Woodbury Police Department; Town of Montgomery Police Department; Town of Wallkill Police Department; and the Village of Cornwall-on-Hudson Police Department.
“Disrupting drug distribution networks requires focused, coordinated efforts between law enforcement and prosecutors,” said District Attorney David M. Hoovler. “This case highlights our commitment to removing dangerous drug dealers and the violence they bring from our communities. We are determined to hold criminals accountable and continue our work with law enforcement to dismantle these criminal enterprises. This sentence serves as a warning to anyone who thinks they can profit by endangering our community.”
The cases are being prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Alexis Gregory and Assistant District Attorney Amanda M. Bettinelli.
A criminal charge is merely an allegation by the police that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law, and it is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the State of New York’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt