Armed Drug Trafficker Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison

Burlington, Vermont – The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced today that Edgar Correa, aka “Joker,” 35, of Springfield, Massachusetts was sentenced today to serve 24 months of imprisonment after his conviction for possession with intent to distribute cocaine and cocaine base, to be followed by a three-year term of supervised release. Correa pleaded guilty to the drug trafficking crime on March 17, 2023. Correa’s co-defendant, Jose Luis Maldonado, Jr., aka “Peeto,” remains pending trial, which has not yet been scheduled.  

According to court records, on October 12, 2022, law enforcement was monitoring electronic video surveillance of a house on Robbins Street in Rutland, Vermont where drug trafficking activity was suspected. On the video, officers noted a man, later identified as Maldonado, carrying a black shotgun with a pistol grip and walking with another man, later identified as Correa, toward a white Honda Civic. The two put bags in the trunk and left the premises. Rutland Police officers located the vehicle and conducted a traffic stop. Four firearms were in the vehicle, including the shotgun in the trunk, a .380 caliber pistol beneath Correa’s seat, a .38 Special revolver between Correa’s seat and the center console, and a .22 caliber pistol between Maldonado’s seat and the center console. A search of the vehicle revealed two bags, found to contain approximately 24 grams of cocaine base, approximately 7 grams of cocaine, and over 550 bags of fentanyl. When Correa was searched incident to arrest, he was found in possession of a firearm magazine loaded with .380 caliber ammunition and a digital scale commonly used to weigh drugs for the purposes of selling a particular quantity. 
 
United States Attorney Nikolas P. Kerest commended the coordinated investigatory efforts of the Vermont State Police’s Drug Task Force, the Rutland Police Department, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The prosecutor was Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan Ophardt. Correa was represented by Federal Public Defender Michael Desautels, Esq. 

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.  For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psn.