High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force arrest man on gun and drug dealing charges

The Rhode Island State Police announce that members of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA ) Task Force arrested a Providence resident for Narcotics and Weapon charges.

On February 28,2020. members of the Rhode Island State Police High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force executed a court authorized search warrant at the residence of Jonathan Rodriguez, age 32, of 44 Rounds Avenue, Basement apartment, Providence, Rhode Island. As a result of this warrant the following was seized:

70 grams of Fentanyl ;
(1) Taurus 9mm Handgun & Ammunition ;
$500.00 in U.S. Currency; and
scales and packaging material used in the distribution of illegal narcotics.

Rodriguez was charged with the following:
1) Possession with Intent to Deliver a Schedule II Controlled Substance – Fentanyl,
2) Possession of Fentanyl – 1 ounce to 1 kilogram,
3) Possession of a Firearm while Committing a Controlled Substance Violation and
4) Possession of a Firearm by Certain Persons Prohibited.

Rodriguez was arraigned at Sixth District Court, Providence where he was held as a Superior Court probation violator.

Any person found guilty of possession of one ounce to one kilo of fentanyl upon conviction, may be imprisoned for a term up to fifty years and fined not more than five hundred thousand dollars.

Any person found guilty of possession of a firearm by certain persons prohibited may be punished by imprisonment for not less than two years and not greater than ten years.

Any person found guilty of possession of a firearm while committing a controlled substance violation may be imprisoned for not less than two years and not greater than twenty years.

The HIDTA Task Force is managed by the Rhode Island State Police. It is comprised of members from the Rhode Island State Police, Lincoln Police, Pawtucket Police, Providence Police, North Providence Police, Middletown Police, West Warwick Police, Bristol Police, Adult Correctional Institution- SIU, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Drug Enforcement Administration(DEA), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Rhode Island National Guard-Counter Drug.