Dominican National Sentenced For Distributing Heroin

BOSTON – A Dominican national was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Springfield for dealing heroin.

Hansel Ramon Rodriguez Ramirez, 38, a Dominican national formerly residing in Springfield, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni to five years in prison and will be subject to deportation proceedings upon completion of his sentence. In January 2019, Rodriguez Ramirez pleaded guilty to one count of distribution of heroin and fentanyl and one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin.

On Feb. 9, 2018, Rodriguez Ramirez sold approximately 100 grams of a mixture of heroin and fentanyl to an individual working with law enforcement for $5,900. On Feb. 14, 2018, Rodriguez Ramirez agreed to sell an additional 200 grams of heroin to the same individual, but law enforcement officials intercepted him before he could do so. At that time, agents found him to be in possession of 200 grams of heroin. Agents subsequently executed a search warrant at Rodriguez Ramirez’s residence, where they found additional heroin and evidence of a heroin mill.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; Colonel Kerry Gilpin, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police; Springfield Police Commissioner Cheryl Clapprood; Holyoke Police Chief Manny Febo; and Chicopee Police Chief William Jebb made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil L. Desroches of Lelling’s Springfield Branch Office prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.