Providence Couple Indicted in Fentanyl-Laced Heroin Bust

Agustin Acevedo, a/k/a Daniel Martinez Suazo, 49, and Dismery Uceta, 42, both of Providence, are behind bars and facing federal time after a grand jury indicted them on charges of trafficking a kilogram of fentanyl-laced heroin from New York to Rhode Island. The two-count indictment, returned Tuesday in Providence, charges the couple with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin and actual possession with intent to distribute the same amount—a charge that carries severe mandatory minimums under federal law.

The case traces back to March 2016, when DEA agents in Washington, DC, flagged information suggesting Acevedo was part of a drug pipeline feeding Rhode Island’s opioid crisis. That intel sparked a joint investigation by the DEA, Rhode Island State Police, and the Warwick Police Department. Surveillance quickly revealed a pattern: Acevedo regularly rented vehicles for short, high-speed trips. On April 29, 2016, he rented a car and, later that day, drove to the Bronx, New York with Uceta. They returned to Rhode Island early the next morning—speeding at 80 mph on Route 95, according to DEA surveillance logs.

State police pulled the car over between exits 5 and 6 for excessive speed. Officer observation turned the routine stop into a major drug bust: inside an open handbag on the floor, troopers spotted a brick-like object wrapped in plastic. The occupants agreed to a search. A K-9 unit hit positive near the bag. A field test confirmed the substance as heroin. Both Acevedo and Uceta were detained on the spot by DEA agents who arrived within minutes.

On May 3, 2016, a Warwick detective received the seized kilogram of suspected heroin for forensic analysis. Latent print examination revealed a match: Acevedo’s left index fingerprint was embedded on the outer wrapping. Lab results from the DEA’s New England Regional Laboratory confirmed the deadly twist—the heroin was laced with fentanyl, a synthetic opioid up to 100 times more potent than morphine, and dipyrone, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug not approved for use in the U.S.

The indictment unsealed this week marks the federal government’s push to hold the couple accountable for flooding local streets with lethal doses disguised as heroin. Authorities stress that even a single batch of fentanyl-laced product has the potential to trigger mass overdoses. Acevedo and Uceta have remained in federal custody since their initial arrest and appearance in U.S. District Court in Providence, where they were first charged via criminal complaint.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul F. Daly, Jr. is prosecuting the case. Federal officials, including U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha, DEA Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Ferguson, Colonel Ann S. Assumpico of the Rhode Island State Police, and Warwick Police Chief Colonel Stephen M. McCartney, emphasized the collaborative effort behind the takedown. An indictment, however, is not a conviction—both defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.