I was researching Columbian drug lord Carlos Lehder and kind of went down a rabbit hole that led me to Atlantic City and NASCAR driver Martin Truex.

A big smuggling case in 1988 involving Americans in South Florida stemming from Lehder involved Leroy Truex smuggling 100,000 pounds of mj. He was convicted and did prison time. So I research Truex deeper and see he owns a marina in AC and there was another story about him being the only jersey guy to get New York commercial clam fishing quotas. The story hints at impropriety but ultimately said nothing illegal happened to get those. Further digging showed he’s either the grandfather or uncle of Nascar’s Martin Truex Jr (there were 2 Leroy Truex’s. Not sure which one was the smuggler).

At this point I’m figuring the smuggling Truex had to be aligned at least loosely with Scarfo. He’s probably the biggest grass dealer in AC during the Scarfo/Leonetti heyday and he’s getting suspicious (maybe) contract commercial fishing quotasout of New York. No way he wasn’t kicking up.

Anybody have any familiarity with any of this?

The Truex family is from Mayetta which is a little neighborhood in Stafford Township about 30 miles north of Atlantic City. I think their roots in the area go back pretty far. That part of Ocean County was like the middle of nowhere until the 80s.It's not like they were from Philly or New York, where they'd be literally hanging out with connected guys. But I guess it's possible someone made them kick up, who knows?

Says they own Barney’s dock in AC. A marina that controls a commercial fishing fleet. Lost a lawsuit in Massachusetts in 2010 for $2M so I assume it’s not some small operation. It was established in 1987.

ETA- The paper clipping about the trial from 88 listed him from AC so I assume he had something going there even if he lived outside of town in Mayetta. Good info though. Thanks.

Clammers and fishermen like that who are originally from down the shore are a tight knit, insular group, suspicious of outsiders.