Dominican National Sentenced to more than 15 Years in Prison for Fentanyl and Heroin Trafficking
BOSTON – A Dominican national was sentenced yesterday in relation to the seizure of over 10 kilograms of fentanyl and heroin in December 2018.
Carlos Soto-Villar, 34, a Dominican national formerly residing in Lawrence, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Patti B. Saris to 188 months in prison and five years of supervised release. He will be subject to deportation proceedings upon completion of his sentence. In October 2020, Soto-Villar was convicted by a federal jury of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin and 400 grams or more of fentanyl.
According to the trial testimony, on Dec. 6, 2018, Soto-Villar supplied a kilogram of fentanyl to a co-defendant. The kilogram of fentanyl was later seized by police on Dec. 7, 2018. A search at the Methuen apartment used by Soto-Villar and a different co-defendant as a drug stash house resulted in the seizure of over nine kilograms of fentanyl and heroin and drug processing equipment. Soto-Villar fled from the apartment and was apprehended a short distance away.
DEA New England Division Special Agent in Charge Brian D. Boyle and Acting United States Attorney Nathaniel R. Mendell made the announcement. Assistance was also provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Methuen Police Department.
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