Haverhill Resident Pleads Guilty to Drug Conspiracy Charge

A 41-year-old Haverhill, Massachusetts resident has pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute oxycodone and cocaine in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

According to court documents and statements made during the plea proceeding, Franklyn Morillo admitted to being part of a group that distributed the controlled substances in both states. During a search of his residence in August 2015, authorities seized over $18,000 in cash and a quantity of cocaine.

Morillo was arrested on October 1, 2015, after a quantity of oxycodone pills and over $2,000 in cash were recovered from his residence at the time of his arrest.

Morillo is one of six individuals indicted on September 23, 2015, for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances. The other defendants include Mara Morillo, Juan Rojas, Justin Bartimus, Jorge Medina, and Michael Lally.

Rojas is also charged with possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and faces a separate indictment for conspiracy to possess a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

Lally, Bartimus, and Mara Morillo have already pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing, while Medina and Rojas are awaiting trial. The case was supported by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a federal multi-agency task force that provides funding to agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations.

The investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Tactical Diversion Squad, with assistance from the Haverhill, Massachusetts Police Department, the Methuen, Massachusetts Police Department, and the Massachusetts State Police. Morillo is set to be sentenced on March 7, 2017.