Dominican National Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl

BOSTON – A Dominican national, who previously unlawfully resided in Lawrence under a false name, has pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston to conspiring to possess and distribute controlled substances.  

Eduardo Morales-Perez, a/k/a “Yenni Rafael Guerrero Aybar,” 41, pleaded guilty on Sept. 2, 2025 to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute controlled substances. U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for Oct. 8, 2025.  

In March 2018, law enforcement arranged an undercover cash pickup as part of a money laundering investigation. An individual arrived at the pre-arranged meeting location for the controlled purchase and provided $275,090 in cash to undercover law enforcement. That individual was driving a white Volvo registered to Morales-Perez’s girlfriend.

Following the transaction, the white Volvo was observed at a property in Peabody. In May 2018, during surveillance of the Peabody location, Morales-Perez was observed exiting a truck with a can of acetone – a chemical commonly used in the illicit manufacturing process of fentanyl analogues – and carrying it into the Peabody residence. A subsequent search of the Peabody property in May 2018 resulted in the recovery of one kilogram pill press; drug distribution paraphernalia; over 2.8 kilograms of fentanyl and fentanyl analogues; over five kilograms of ANPP (a controlled substance that is frequently used in the manufacturing process of fentanyl); and $130,000 in cash that was packaged like the cash provided in the March controlled purchase. The drugs and cash were located in a hidden compartment above a light fixture.

The charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute controlled substances provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least three years and up to life of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. The defendant is subject to deportation upon completion of any sentence imposed. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
        
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Medford, Peabody and Ipswich Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren A. Graber and Brian J. Sullivan of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit are prosecuting the case.