Lawrence Woman Sentenced for Role in Heroin and Fentanyl Ring

BOSTON – A Lawrence woman was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for her role in a heroin and fentanyl trafficking ring operating in southeastern Massachusetts. 

Miguelina Mejia Ruiz, a/k/a Doris, 43, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge George A. O’Toole Jr. to two years in prison and three years of supervised release. In June 2017, Mejia Ruiz pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute heroin and fentanyl.

Mejia Ruiz was the wife of Eric Matos, who was charged with supplying heroin and fentanyl to a drug trafficking organization led by Dedwin Cruz-Rivera. The investigation revealed that Cruz-Rivera obtained large quantities of heroin and fentanyl from drug suppliers, including co-defendant Matos, which he then resold in the Fall River, New Bedford and Providence, R.I., communities.  Mejia Ruiz delivered drugs and collected money on behalf of Matos. Mejia Ruiz was caught delivering almost 300 grams of fentanyl and 200 grams of heroin in separate incidents.

​​ The investigation culminated with the arrests and charges of Mejia Ruiz and 24 others in connection with Cruz-Rivera’s heroin and fentanyl trafficking operation; an April 2016 superseding indictment brought the number of defendants charged in the case to 26.

On July 27, 2017, Mejia Ruiz’s husband, Matos, from whom she is separated, was sentenced to 121 months in prison.  Cruz-Rivera pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 16, 2018.

Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb and Michael J. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas E. Kanwit, formerly of Weinreb’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit, prosecuted the case, along with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen Beausey, Katherine Ferguson and Ann Taylor.