Worcester Man Pleads Guilty to Role in Drug Distribution Conspiracy

BOSTON - A Worcester man pleaded guilty yesterday for his involvement in a cocaine distribution conspiracy.

Luis Torres, 47, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to possess with the intent to distribute and to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine and one count of use of a communication facility to facilitate a drug felony. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman scheduled sentencing for Sept. 17, 2024. In December 2022, Torres was indicated by a federal grand jury.

Torres conspired with others to coordinate delivery of a package sent from Puerto Rico known by him to contain 4 to 6 kilograms of cocaine and to take possession of the cocaine with the intent to distribute it. In June 2022, law enforcement intercepted the package and executed a controlled delivery during which another individual accepted the package while Torres sat in a car nearby. Torres was arrested at the scene and $26,480 in cash from the car in which Torres was being driven was recovered. Torres admitted he received cash as an advance payment for one of the kilos of cocaine.

The charge of conspiring to distribute five hundred or more grams of cocaine provides for a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years of supervised release and a fine of up to $5 million. The charge of using a communications facility to facilitate a drug felony provides for up to four years incarceration, a fine up to $250,000 and supervised release of up to one year. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Michael J. Krol, Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; and John E. Mawn, Jr., Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kaitlin Brown of the Worcester Branch Office is prosecuting the case.