Jose Torres Serrano Gets 66 Months for Cocaine Trafficking

Jose Torres Serrano, 30, of Bayamon, Puerto Rico, is headed to federal prison for 66 months after being sentenced in New Haven for trafficking nearly 5.3 kilograms of cocaine into Connecticut. The hardline sentence, handed down by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Alker Meyer, underscores the federal crackdown on drug networks exploiting mail and travel routes from U.S. territories.

On November 19, 2015, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in San Juan tipped off their Hartford counterparts: two packages, laced with a combined 5.27 kilograms of high-grade cocaine, were en route to drop points in Waterbury and Middletown. Tracing the digital and logistical trail, agents quickly zeroed in on Serrano as both the sender from Puerto Rico and the intended recipient on the mainland.

Serrano didn’t wait long to make his move. He flew from Puerto Rico to Connecticut the same day the alert was issued, arriving to collect the packages and distribute the narcotics. But HSI, working with local law enforcement, was already watching. He was arrested at the Waterbury address on November 20, 2015, before a single gram hit the streets.

Detained without bond since the day of his arrest, Serrano pleaded guilty on September 16, 2016, to one count of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. The plea came without a deal, leaving the sentence entirely in the judge’s hands—a rare gamble that landed him more than five years behind bars.

The investigation was a joint force operation involving Homeland Security Investigations, the Middletown Police Department, and the Connecticut State Police. Critical support came from the Middlesex State’s Attorney’s Office, which lent Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Eugene Calistro to the case. Calistro was cross-designated as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney to prosecute alongside Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert M. Spector.

Serrano now faces 66 months in federal prison, followed by four years of supervised release. The case exposes the persistent flow of narcotics from Puerto Rico to the mainland—and the tightening net of interagency cooperation determined to cut it off at the source.