Rhode Island Man Sentenced To Prison For Fentanyl Trafficking Conspiracy
BOSTON – A Cranston, R.I. man was sentenced in federal court in Boston for his involvement in a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that distributed fentanyl throughout Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Mario Rafael Dominguez-Ortiz, 27, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs to one year and a day in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. In May 2024, Dominguez-Ortiz pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. Dominguez-Ortiz was indicted by a federal grand jury in August 2022 along with nine other individuals.
In March 2021, an investigation began into a DTO operating in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island led by Estarlin Ortiz-Alcantara. The investigation identified Dominguez-Ortiz as a member of the DTO who was employed by Ortiz-Alcantara to deliver fentanyl. On four occasions between July and November 2021, Dominguez-Ortiz delivered fentanyl to a cooperating source. The total amount of fentanyl that the defendant distributed over the fourth-month period was approximately 500 grams.
Estarlin Ortiz-Alcantara pleaded guilty in December 2023 and is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 5, 2025.
United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; New Bedford Police Chief Paul Oliveira; and Fairhaven Police Chief Michael J. Myers made the announcement today. Special assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police; Homeland Security Investigations; Bristol County Sherriff’s Office; and Fall River, Taunton, Attleboro, Scituate, Yarmouth, Providence (R.I.) and West Warwick (R.I.) Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Mulcahy of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.
This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
