CHRISTIANSTED – Two natives of the Dominican Republic who brought 2,000 pounds of cocaine by boat near Puerto Rico were given prison terms of four and nearly eight years in prison.
United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert said today that two additional sentencings originating from a large-scale drug trafficking conspiracy were investigated and prosecuted on St. Croix.
U.S. District Court Judge Anne Thompson on Thursday sentenced Luis Antonio Rijos-Santana, 51, of the Dominican Republic, to 95 months (7.9 years) in prison and Maurucio Javier Diaz, 30, also of the Dominican Republic, to 50 months (4.2 years) in prison for possession of cocaine on board a vessel.
In addition, Judge Thompson sentenced Rijos-Santana to six years of supervised release and to pay a special assessment of $100.00,and Diaz to two years of supervised release and to pay a fine of $500.00 and a special assessment of $100.00.
Diaz and Rijos-Santana entered guilty pleas to possession of a controlled substance on board a vessel on July 10, 2017 and July 19, 2017 respectively.
Court documents revealed that while on routine patrol along the north coast of Puerto Rico, U.S. Coast Guard Cutter operator Richard Dixon, together with assistance provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), located a vessel operating without lights, approximately 58 nautical miles north of Fajardo, Puerto Rico in international waters.
The Coast Guard and CBP observed Diaz, Rijos-Santana, and codefendant Carlos Manuel Castro Felix discarding small items, consistent with electronics, over the side vessel. Rijos-Santana was the operator of the vessel, which bore no markings and flew no flag.
The Coast Guard intercepted and boarded the vessel, where officers discovered 45 bales of cocaine with a net weight of 909 kilograms (2,004 pounds).
Felix was originally charged along with Diaz and Rijos-Santana.
He entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to 70 months in prison on February 1, 2018.
The incident was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard, the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alphonso G. Andrews, Jr.
