Drug bust lead to the arrest of nearly 100 people in Connecticut this week during a massive raid concluding a major drug trafficking operation of two notorious drug gangs. They were suspected of trafficking heroin and cocaine from the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico to the U.S.

Around 700 law enforcement officers took part in the arrests that were carried out in Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Puerto Rico.

"They made the area a gateway for their illegal poison," said Bruce Foucart, special agent in charge of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. "The fact is, we dismantled them."

Federal officials said the arrests came after a 15-month investigation began focusing on "two overlapping conspiracies centered on New London County, one involving heroin distribution and one involving cocaine distribution."

Ross Feinstein, a spokesman for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement arm of the Department of Homeland Security said earlier this morning, "Homeland Security Investigations, along with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners are executing numerous federal and state arrest and search warrants at locations in southeastern Connecticut."

U.S. Attorney David Fein added, "We allege that the defendants arrested today were responsible for a very large percentage of the heroin and cocaine available for street sale in New London County."

Reuters report, the investigation included "more than a dozen law-enforcement agencies." In addition to the arrests, law enforcement officials seized money, weapons, and drugs during the bust.

Authorities stated that those arrested were taken to the U.S. District Court in New Haven, Connecticut, with many facing mandatory minimum sentences of five years in jail.