Fitchburg Man Pleads Guilty to Wide-Ranging Cocaine Conspiracy

BOSTON – A Fitchburg man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Worcester to his role in a wide-ranging fentanyl, heroin, crack and cocaine trafficking conspiracy.

Jonathan Villot, 31 pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 280 grams or more of cocaine base (commonly known as crack cocaine), and 500 grams or more of cocaine. U.S. Senior District Court Judge Timothy S. Hillman scheduled sentencing for June 15, 2023. Villot was indicted in July 2020 along with 17 others, including his brother and alleged co-conspirator Pedro Villot-Santiago.  

According to court documents, following a fatal fentanyl overdose in September 2018, an investigation began into a drug trafficking organization (DTO) in the Fitchburg area. Beginning in July 2019, controlled purchases and intercepted electronic communications between members of the DTO and its suppliers identified Villot as a cocaine distributor.  

Over the course of the investigation, over 1.8 kilograms of a heroin and fentanyl mixture, over 3.6 kilograms of cocaine and over 50 grams of crack cocaine, as well as a stolen, loaded handgun, drug manufacturing equipment and over $376,000 was seized.

Villot is the 15th defendant to be convicted in the case – either by guilty plea or jury conviction following trial.

United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Commissioner Carol Mici of the Massachusetts Department of Correction; and John E. Mawn Jr., Interim Colonel of the Massachusetts State Police made the announcement today. The Fitchburg and Lunenburg Police Departments and U.S. Postal Inspection Service provided valuable assistance. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alathea Porter of Rollins’ Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.  

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law