Eddie Lopez-Lopez Sentenced To 33 Months In Prison For Possession Of Cocaine With Intent To Distribute

St. Thomas, USVI - District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez today sentenced Eddie Lopez-Lopez, 36, to 33 months in prison for possession with intent to distribute cocaine, United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe announced.

According to court records, Lopez-Lopez was arrested on May 18, 2013, as part of the drug trafficking investigation of Roberto Tapia, the former Director of the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources (DPNR) Division of Environmental Enforcement. On November 7, 2013, Lopez-Lopez was charged in a 69-count indictment charging various drug trafficking offenses, along with seven other defendants, including Angelo Hill, Raymond Brown, Edwin Monsanto, Stephen Torres, Hector Alcenio, Walter Hill, and Angel Negron-Beltran. On January 29, 2014, Lopez-Lopez pleaded guilty to possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.

The case was investigated by the Public Corruption Task Force, which comprises the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); Virgin Islands Police Department; U.S. Marshals Service; Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI); U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI); U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP); United States Coast Guard; Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and Office of the Virgin Islands Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly B. Lake and Kim Lindquist prosecuted the case.