Man sentenced to prison for distributing millions of fentanyl pills across Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, other states

BOSTON – A Rhode Island man was sentenced in federal court in Boston for his role in a large-scale fentanyl trafficking conspiracy responsible for the distribution of large quantities of fentanyl across Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York and other states.

According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, Jasdrual a/k/a Josh Perez, 36, of Cranston, R.I., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Leo T. Sorokin to 22.5 years in prison to be followed by five years of supervised release. Perez was also ordered to pay a fine of $1 million. In addition, Perez was ordered to forfeit his rights to the residence from which Perez distributed fentanyl.

“Fentanyl kills over 2,000 people a year in Massachusetts. That is unacceptable.    Jasdural Perez was running a business that pumped over 200 kilograms of this deadly poison onto the streets of Massachusetts and neighboring states, wreaking havoc and destroying lives. This was not some low-level street dealer. This is a man who bought industrial pill presses to churn out millions of pills containing highly addictive and dangerous fentanyl.” said United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy. “This office and our federal partners will stay relentless in holding accountable the people contributing to this deadly crisis. We commend the tireless work of our law enforcement partners who continue, day in and day out, to root out, dismantle and punish these organizations and the people who sit atop them.”

“Fentanyl is causing deaths in record numbers and DEA’s top priority is to aggressively pursue anyone who distributes this poison, especially in the form of pills designed to look like real prescription medication, in order to profit and destroy lives,” said Acting DEA Special Agent in Charge Stephen Belleau, New England Field Division. “Illegal drug distribution ravages the very foundations of our families and communities so every time we take fentanyl off the streets, lives are saved. This investigation demonstrates the strength of collaborative local, county and state law enforcement efforts in Massachusetts and our strong partnership with the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”

“The sentence of Jasdural Perez sends a strong message to all those who seek to endanger the welfare and wellbeing of our communities in order to enrich themselves,” said Jonathan Wlodyka, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, Boston Field Office. “Perez led a syndicate whose sole intent was flooding our streets with large quantities of deadly drugs. By concealing fentanyl as pharmaceutical grade prescription drugs, Perez further endangered his clients lives by selling them a product that is much more potent and deadly.”

Perez was the leader of a drug trafficking organization based in Providence, R.I., that distributed significant quantities of fentanyl. Perez and his DTO pressed fentanyl powder into pills designed to look like pharmaceutical grade Oxycodone or Percocet pills and sold these pills across multiple states. Perez and his DTO distributed an estimated 200 kilograms of fentanyl and manufactured and sold millions of counterfeit pills containing fentanyl.  Perez led the DTO, had multiple people working for him and manufactured fentanyl pills himself. 

On Feb. 7, 2022, a search of a home owned by Perez resulted in the seizure of two industrial-sized pill presses and kilograms of fentanyl, including bags containing fentanyl powder and over 50,000 counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl.

Perez fled from Rhode Island to New York upon hearing of the searches on his properties. While he was fleeing, Perez orchestrated another fentanyl deal, this time for the sale of 19,000 pills. Those drugs were also seized.

Perez was arrested on Feb. 11, 2022 and has been in custody since his arrest.  Last week, co-defendant Erik Ventura was sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in this conspiracy. 

U.S. Attorney Levy; DEA Acting SAC Belleau; Acting IRS SAC Wlodyka; and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Special assistance in the investigation was provided by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island; Rhode Island State Police; Massachusetts State Police; and the Cranston, Warwick, and West Warwick, RI Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kunal Pasricha, Lindsey Weinstein and Craig Estes of the Criminal Division and Alexandra Amrhein of the Asset Forfeiture Unit represented the government.

This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations.