Juan Pablo Ariasgil, Cocaine Conspiracy, Massachusetts 2021
A Lowell man was sentenced to four years in prison for his role in a cocaine trafficking conspiracy connected to a Colombian-based criminal enterprise.
Juan Pablo Ariasgil, 41, of Lowell, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV to four years in prison and four years of supervised release.
Ariasgil pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine and one count of possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine in April 2021.
The conspiracy involved members of La Oficina de Envigado (La Oficina), a criminal organization based in Medellín, Colombia. La Oficina originated in the 1980s as an enforcement and collection service for the Medellín Cartel, including deceased leader Pablo Escobar.
Co-defendants Fabio de Jesus Yepes Sanchez and Mario Zapata Velez were alleged members of La Oficina who were charged with collecting a $750,000 drug debt from two cocaine traffickers in Massachusetts. It is alleged that Yepes and Zapata conspired with Ariasgil and others to obtain five kilograms of cocaine from the Massachusetts traffickers, sell those kilograms, and then repatriate the drug proceeds to Colombia.
This operation is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation, which targets high-level drug traffickers and money launderers using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.
Ariasgil's charges carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of up to $10 million.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jared Dolan and Lauren Graber of the U.S. Attorney's Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit.
Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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