Rochester Man Going To Prison For His Role In Drug Conspiracy

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Juan Ortega-Baez, 19, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, was sentenced to serve 36 months in prison by U.S. District Judge David G. Larimer.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Cassie Kocher, who handled the case, stated that between August and December 2018, the defendant conspired with others to distribute fentanyl in and around the City of Rochester. In furtherance of the conspiracy, Ortega-Baez used a phone provided by a co-conspirator to take calls from drug customers. After receiving orders from the customers, the defendant obtained quantities of fentanyl from a co-conspirator, and then delivered the drugs to the customer. Ortega-Baez would take payment from the customer and deliver the profits to another co-conspirator. 

The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge John B. Devito, New York Field Division; the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief La’Ron Singletary; U.S. Border Patrol, under the direction of Patrol Agent-in-charge Luis R. Tafoya; the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Gary Loeffert; and the Drug Enforcement Administration, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Ray Donovan, New York Field Division.