United States Drug Enforcement Administration

BOSTON – A Bronx, N.Y., man has been sentenced in federal court in Springfield, Massachusetts for his role in a large-scale drug conspiracy that trafficked dozens of kilos of heroin and fentanyl into Springfield from New York City and the Dominican Republic every month.

Marvin Ortega, 35, was sentenced on June 23, 2022 by U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to 30 months in prison and two years of supervised release. In March 2019, Ortega pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin.

“DEA is committed to investigating and dismantling Drug Trafficking Organizations and individuals like Mr. Ortega who are responsible for distributing lethal drugs like heroin and fentanyl to the citizens of Massachusetts” said Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New England Division. “Let this arrest be a warning to those traffickers who distribute this poison in order to profit and destroy people’s lives. DEA’s top priority is combatting the opioid epidemic by working with our local, county, state and federal partners to bring to justice anyone who distributes deadly drugs.”

“The impact of drug trafficking can be felt by everyone. Mr. Ortega was involved in an organization that funneled heroin and fentanyl into the Springfield area – profiting off of people’s pain,” said United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins. “Drug trafficking activities, specifically those involving fentanyl, pose an immeasurable threat to public safety. The opioid crisis has taken the lives of over two thousand people last year in our Commonwealth. They were mothers, children, fathers, siblings, and loved ones and they are gone. Forever. We cannot allow ourselves to grow numb to this epidemic and become complacent. My office will not look the other way. Narcotics dealers will be identified, prosecuted and held accountable.”

“Opioid-related overdoses and deaths affect our community on a daily basis. The increase of fentanyl on our streets has only increased how deadly these drugs have become. This sentence will hopefully send a message to those individuals looking bring heroin and fentanyl into our city and region that we have a team of law enforcement partners working together to investigate and ultimately convict those responsible,” said Springfield Police Superintendent Cheryl C. Clapprood. “I’d like to thank U.S. Attorney Rollins, her team and our local, regional and federal partners for their work on this investigation,”

Ortega transported heroin to Springfield and the proceeds from the sale to New York for a drug trafficking organization (DTO) based in Springfield, which was run by Alberto Marte. Marte had direct contact with heroin suppliers in the Dominican Republic and members of his DTO transported between eight and 20 kilograms of heroin, with a street value of approximately $1.6 million and $4 million, respectively, into the Springfield area every month. When law enforcement authorities executed federal search warrants in September 2016, they recovered approximately $140,000 in cash and over six kilograms of heroin.

DEA SAC Boyle; U.S. Attorney Rollins; Superintendent Clapprood; Matthew B. Millhollin, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in Boston; Colonel Christopher Mason, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; Hampden County District Attorney Anthony D. Gulluni; Chicopee Police Chief Patrick Major; Holyoke Police Chief David Pratt; and West Springfield Police Chief Paul Connor made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Neil L. Desroches of Rollins’ Springfield Branch Office and Stephen W. Hassink of Rollins’ Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.