Cocaine Trafficker Sentenced To More Than 8 Years In Federal Prison
Conn. - Leonard C Boyle, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that PEDRO RIVERA, 50, last residing in St. Cloud, Florida, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to 100 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for trafficking cocaine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Hartford Task Force and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service into individuals who were receiving shipments of cocaine from Puerto Rico and California and distributing the drug in and around Hartford. The investigation revealed that Rivera arranged to have a cocaine source in Puerto Rico send parcels containing kilograms of cocaine to addresses in Hartford. When the cocaine parcels arrived, Jesus Rodriguez, a U.S. Postal Service letter carrier, delivered the cocaine to Rivera. Rodriguez also distributed cocaine to his own drug customers, and delivered parcels to other cocaine traffickers in the Hartford area.
Investigators intercepted numerous communications over a court-authorized wiretap during which Rivera and Rodriguez arranged the delivery of a cocaine parcel. Investigators subsequently seized the parcel, which contained three kilograms of cocaine.
Rivera was arrested in Florida on June 3, 2019. On June 4, 2019, a grand jury in Hartford returned an indictment charging Rivera, Rodriguez and 17 others with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and related offenses. On November 3, 2021, Rivera pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.
Rivera has been detained since his arrest.
The DEA’s Hartford Task Force includes personnel from the DEA Hartford Resident Office, the Connecticut State Police, and the Bristol, Hartford, East Hartford, Enfield, Manchester, New Britain, Rocky Hill, Wethersfield, Windsor Locks and Willimantic Police Departments.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey M. Stone through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program. OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
