San Juan, Apr 12 (EFE).- A grand jury in Puerto Rico issued a six-count indictment against 63 alleged drug traffickers in the municipality of San Germán, in the southwest of the Caribbean island, the Federal Prosecutor’s Office reported Wednesday.
“This case is an excellent example of successful drug seizure operations that result from collaboration between federal and state agencies,” W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, said in a statement.
According to the US Attorney’s document, the indictment alleges that from 2015 to April 3, 2023, the defendants belonged to a drug trafficking organization that distributed heroin, cocaine base (commonly known as “crack”), cocaine, marijuana, fentanyl, oxycodone and alprazolam in San Germán.
“We can get criminals off the streets and bring stability and peace to our communities when we jointly apply our resources, personnel and operational expertise to take on extensive organized crime networks,” Muldrow added.
Authorities indicated that the defendants trafficked drugs on a basketball court in the presence of minors and used multiple vehicles to transport money, narcotics and firearms.
They also used force, violence, and intimidation to maintain control of drug operations and intimidate rival gangs.
Eight of the defendants were also accused of possession of firearms.
If convicted, the individuals face a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison. A federal judge will determine the sentence.
At the end of last year, the governor of Puerto Rico, Pedro Pierluisi, asked US President Joe Biden for more resources to combat the entry of drugs to the island.
Pierluisi argued that the island’s strategic location makes it a transshipment point for illegal drug smuggling into the US from Central and South America and other Caribbean countries.
Last March, the resident commissioner of Puerto Rico in Washington, Jenniffer González Colón, announced a federal injection of more than 10 million dollars to fight drug trafficking.
