Louis Angel Soto, Heroin Trafficking, PA 2024

SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania served up a tough sentence today, locking up Edwardsville’s Louis Angel Soto for 87 months. The judge’s hammer came down on March 28 after Soto, 27, was caught with heroin, weed, and a loaded .40 caliber Smith & Wesson during a DEA raid.

Soto’s street hustle landed him in legal hot water back in November 2015 when he was indicted by a grand jury. The plea deal he struck on March 18, 2016, sealed his fate. He’s been behind bars since he was busted, and it looks like he’ll be there for quite some time.

The DEA and the Wilkes-Barre Police Department deserve kudos for this one. They were all over Soto’s trail, leading to today’s conviction. Assistant United States Attorney Evan Gotlob was the pitbull prosecutor in the case.

This isn’t just another drug bust, folks. It’s part of a broader initiative to crush violent crime and stem the tide of heroin flooding our streets. The Violent Crime Reduction Partnership (VCRP) has been at the forefront, with federal, state, and local agencies working hand in hand to bring Soto to justice.

And that’s not all. This is also part of a relentless campaign against the heroin epidemic. The Heroin Initiative targets traffickers like Soto and their ilk. Federal, state, and local law enforcement are on a mission to clean up the mess he left behind.