Providence men convicted of trafficking 16 kilos of fentanyl and possessing ghost guns
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter F. Neronha announced that two Providence men have been convicted in Providence County Superior Court of trafficking 16 kilograms of fentanyl and possessing two ghost guns stemming from an investigation by the Rhode Island State Police (RISP) High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force into narcotics distribution in the greater Providence area in 2021.
On April 9, 2024, before Superior Court Justice Robert D. Krause, Miguel Cruz (age 33) and Angel Camilo (age 23) each pled guilty to possession of over one kilogram of fentanyl, possession of over one kilogram of para-Flourofentanyl, conspiracy to violate Rhode Island’s Uniform Controlled Substances Act, possession of a ghost gun, and possession of a ghost gun while possessing with intent to distribute a controlled substance.
Both defendants are scheduled to be sentenced before Justice Krause in Providence County Superior Court on June 20, 2024.
“One of the key components of stemming the illicit fentanyl trade is the concerted effort that law enforcement in Rhode Island makes to target the significant traffickers, because they are driving the supply into our communities,” said Attorney General Neronha. “At the time of their arrest by the Rhode Island State Police, this represented one of the State’s largest fentanyl seizures. Make no mistake, the defendants here are at the core of so much of the fentanyl that was harming Rhode Islanders several years ago. I am grateful to the Rhode Island State Police for their outstanding work and partnership in this case and in so many others.”
Had the cases proceeded to trial, the State was prepared to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendants operated a significant narcotics trafficking operation in the greater Providence area before their arrest in 2021.
Following an investigation, members of the Rhode Island State Police (RISP) High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force executed search warrants at residences in Providence and Cranston, as well as several vehicles where they seized significant amounts of fentanyl, two ghost guns, cash, and narcotics paraphernalia.
At a residence on Marlborough Street in Providence, investigators discovered that the basement was converted into a quasi-lab where fentanyl was processed.
In total, investigators seized approximately 16 kilograms of fentanyl, which was laced with para-Flourofentanyl, tramadol, and xylazine; approximately $20,000 in cash, two 9mm Polymer80 ghost guns; and narcotics paraphernalia.
Detectives Conor O’Donnell and Thomas Zincone of the Rhode Island State Police HIDTA Task Force and Special Assistant Attorneys General Daniel Hopkins and Alyse Antone Smyth of the Office of the Attorney General led the investigation and prosecution of the case.