United States Drug Enforcement Administration

CONCORD, N.H. – DEA New England Division Special Agent in Charge Brian D. Boyle and United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced that Jesus Rivera, 21, of Lawrence, Mass., was sentenced to 150 months in prison for participating in a conspiracy to distribute over 400 grams of fentanyl.

According to court documents and statements made in court, a drug trafficking organization employed the defendant to sell fentanyl to customers from various New England states, including New Hampshire. On each day that the defendant worked, the organization provided him with at least one 200-gram bag of fentanyl and expected him to sell it and return approximately $6,000 in proceeds. In addition to Rivera, 33 defendants have been charged with participating in this conspiracy.

Rivera previously pleaded guilty on March 8, 2019. 

“Illegal drug distribution ravages the very foundations of our families and communities, so every time we take fentanyl off the streets, lives are saved,” said Special Agent in Charge Boyle. “Let this sentence be a warning to those traffickers who are coming from out of state to distribute this poison, that DEA and its local, state and federal partners will do everything in our power to bring you to justice.”

“Fentanyl is not manufactured in New Hampshire,” said U.S. Attorney Murray. “This deadly drug is introduced into the state by traffickers and the results have been devastating. In order interrupt this lethal supply chain, we will continue to be aggressive in our efforts to prosecute and incarcerate fentanyl traffickers.” 

The case was a collaborative investigation that involved the DEA, New Hampshire State Police,  Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, Nashua Police Department, Massachusetts State Police, Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office, Essex County District Attorney’s Office, Internal Revenue Service, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, United States Customs and Border Protection Boston Field Office, United States Marshals Service, United States Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, Manchester Police Department, Lisbon Police Department, Littleton Police Department, Seabrook Police Department, Haverhill (Mass.) Police Department,  Methuen (Mass.) Police Department, Lowell (Mass.) Police Department and the Maine State Police.

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