NEWARK, N.J. — A Bronx, New York, man will serve 13 years in prison for distributing heroin and fentanyl into New Jersey from two drug mills in the Bronx that resulted in the death of a 15-month-old child. The sentence follows an investigation led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Newark.
Jhan Carlos Capellan Maldonado, 35, was sentenced Oct. 16 at the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey in Newark. He previously pleaded guilty to a superseding information charging him with one count of distributing heroin and fentanyl from a drug mill in the Bronx in December 2018. Capellan Maldonado admitted that his distribution of fentanyl caused the 15-month-old child’s death.
“Jhan Carlos Capellan Maldonado earned time behind bars for criminal activities that tragically took an innocent life he exposed to fentanyl,” said HSI Newark acting Special Agent in Charge Spiros Karabinas. “This case is a horrific reminder of the harm deadly narcotics have on our communities. HSI and our law enforcement partners are dedicated to dismantling drug trafficking organizations who peddle poison with a wanton disregard for human life.”
HSI Newark thanked the DEA’s New York Division for its support in the investigation leading up to the sentencing.
Capellan Maldonado also pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing fentanyl from a separate drug mill in the Bronx in February 2019. Six other individuals — Reimon Genao Rosario, 28; Dilson Vazquez Genao, 28; Eddie Urena Rodriguez, 39; Francisco Mercedes Gil, 36; Daury Contreras Ulerio aka Majimbou, 39; and Jose Antonio Vazquez Pena aka Tono, 51 — also of the Bronx, have previously pleaded guilty to the same charge and were sentenced.
According to the investigation, in February 2019, law enforcement officers learned that Capellan Maldonado was again using an apartment in Bronx to store, mix and package heroin and fentanyl in distribution quantities. Pena stayed at the apartment to safeguard the narcotics and narcotics supplies. Maldonado employed five workers at a time — including Rodriguez, Ulerio, Rosario, Gil and Genao — to assist in preparing the heroin and fentanyl for distribution, which Maldonado then distributed to customers in New Jersey.
On Feb. 27, 2019, law enforcement searched Maldonado’s apartment and found seven individuals inside, including Rodriguez, Ulerio, Rosario, Gil, Maldonado, Pena and Genao. All seven defendants attempted to escape out a window, and all but one — Rosario — were apprehended and arrested by law enforcement officers waiting outside. Rosario was arrested at a later date. Law enforcement recovered nearly a kilogram of fentanyl from the apartment, along with materials to grind and package fentanyl for distribution.
In addition to the prison term, Maldonado was sentenced to five years of supervised release.
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