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Press Release

Rochester Man Pleads Guilty To Fentanyl Conspiracy

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of New York

CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Jonathan Velasquez, 25, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge David G. Larimer to conspiracy to distribute over 40 grams of fentanyl. The charge carries a minimum penalty of five years in prison, a maximum of 40 years, and a $5,000,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassie Kocher, who is handling the case, stated that the defendant conspired with others to distribute quantities of heroin throughout the Western District of New York. 

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief La’Ron Singletary; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito; the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Eric Laughton; United States Border Patrol, under the direction of Patrol Agent-in-Charge Jeffrey Wilson; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert; the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff Randy Bower; and the Orleans County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of District Attorney Joseph V. Cardone.

Sentencing is scheduled for September 5, 2019, at 11:00 p.m. before Judge Larimer.

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Updated June 18, 2019

Topic
Drug Trafficking