PROVIDENCE — A Dominican national at the center of a multi-kilogram heroin and cocaine pipeline admitted in federal court today that he ran a brutal drug operation out of a West Warwick stash house in 2014. Rafael Lara Sanquintin, 37, of Providence, confessed to orchestrating shipments of narcotics from California, then directing a crew to store, cut, and distribute the poison across Rhode Island.
On at least three occasions, DEA agents intercepted packages bound for Warwick, Pawtucket, and Providence — each containing one or more kilograms of heroin or cocaine. Sanquintin admitted he ordered underlings to retrieve the packages and funnel the drugs through the West Warwick apartment he rented and controlled. The operation moved like a machine: receive, process, deliver — all under his command.
Law enforcement caught two vehicles leaving the stash house with operatives working directly for Sanquintin. Inside, agents found 653 grams and 1,114 grams of pure heroin — quantities that speak to the scale of the supply chain. The drug ring flooded streets with high-potency narcotics during a peak period of opioid crisis devastation in New England.
Sanquintin was indicted on November 22, 2016, but wasn’t taken into custody until December 12, 2016, when Customs and Border Patrol agents snatched him off a cruise ship in West Palm Beach, Florida. He was trying to sneak back into the U.S. after deportation, a move that landed him in federal prison in the Southern District of Florida. In March 2017, he was convicted of attempted illegal reentry by an aggravated felon and served 14 months behind bars.
Back in federal custody since completing that sentence, Sanquintin stood before U.S. District Court Judge William E. Smith and pleaded guilty to two counts: conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin, and conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. He admitted to trafficking at least 10 kilograms of heroin and 5 kilograms of cocaine — a mountain of death.
Sentencing is set for November 12, 2020. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul F. Daly, Jr., as part of a broader federal crackdown on interstate drug syndicates. Special Agent in Charge Brian D. Boyle of the DEA’s New England Field Division and U.S. Attorney Aaron L. Weisman announced the plea, underscoring that no distance — not even a cruise ship at port — can shield traffickers from federal justice.
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Key Facts
- State: Rhode Island
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: Official Source ↗
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