United States Drug Enforcement Administration

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Jomar Cruz-Aponte, 28, of Pawtucket, is scheduled to be sentenced by a federal judge in February after admitting today that in December 2021, he retrieved and took possession of a package he believed contained a controlled substance, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha.

Cruz-Aponte admitted that he agreed to retrieve the package from the front porch of a Pawtucket residence and deliver it to another individual in exchange for $500.

According to information presented to the court, the package retrieved by Cruz-Aponte was shipped from Colombia and was intercepted by Customs and Border Protection. An inspection determined that it contained approximately one kilogram of cocaine stashed inside the tube of an old TV.  Law enforcement officers set up surveillance at the location that the package was addressed to and, after the package was delivered, minus the cocaine, they observed Cruz-Aponte walking around the area, returning a short time later as a passenger in a vehicle, and then retrieve the package. He left the left the area in the same vehicle in which he arrived.

Surveillance officers observed the vehicle leave the area and a Pawtucket Police cruiser effected a car stop a short time later. During the traffic stop, Cruz-Aponte briefly attempted to flee by lunging from the car, with the package in hand, and throwing the package to the ground. He quickly surrendered to law enforcement.

Cruz-Aponte pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to a charge of possession with intent to distribute cocaine. He is scheduled to be sentenced on December 20, 2023. The defendant’s sentence will be determined by a federal district judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney G. Michael Seaman.

The matter was investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Pawtucket Police Department.