Fitchburg Man Sentenced to Prison for Fentanyl and Cocaine Trafficking Conspiracy

BOSTON - A Fitchburg man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Worcester for his role in a fentanyl and cocaine trafficking conspiracy.

Jose Mercado Aponte, 31, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman to 70 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release. In October 2024, Mercado Aponte pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, one count of distribution of and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine, and five counts of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

Between April 2023 and Nov. 13, 2023, Mercado Aponte conspired with others, including Hector Soto Gonzalez, to knowing and intentionally distribute fentanyl and cocaine. Mercado Aponte met up with a cooperating witness (CW) on at least seven occasions to provide fentanyl and cocaine in exchange for money in Worcester and Leominster, Mass. During some of these meetings, Mercado Aponte discussed selling a firearm to the CW.

This investigation culminated on Nov. 13, 2023, when Mercado Aponte arranged to sell a kilogram of fentanyl to the CW that day. On that date, Mercado Aponte communicated with the CW to coordinate the deal and then made three calls to Soto Gonzalez who resided at a location in Hartford, Conn. Later that afternoon, law enforcement conducting surveillance of the residence in Hartford, Conn., observed Soto Gonzalez leave his residence and put something in his trunk. Soto Gonzalez subsequently departed his residence in his truck and travelled from Connecticut to Massachusetts where a traffic stop was conducted. Inside of Soto Gonzalez's vehicle, law enforcement recovered approximately one kilogram of fentanyl.

Soto Gonzalez is scheduled to change his plea on January 16, 2024.

United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Colonel Geoffrey Noble of the Massachusetts State Police; and Commissioner Shawn Jenkins of the Massachusetts Department of Correction made the announcement today. The Federal Bureau of Investigation New Haven Division, Norfolk County Sheriff's Office, and the Watertown, Reading, Peabody, Hudson, Concord, Waltham, Fitchburg, Leominster, and Hartford, Connecticut Police Departments provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Mackenzie Duane of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit is prosecuting the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.