Member of Interstate Drug & Gun Trafficking Network Pleads Guilty

BOSTON – A member of an interstate drug and firearm trafficking network pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston to drug and firearm conspiracy charges.

Nilbel Ventura Amaro, a/k/a “Nino,” a/k/a “Megamind,” a/k/a “Ben,” a/k/a “Migo,” 26, of Lawrence, Mass., pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute, manufacture and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances and one count of conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking. U.S. Senior District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton scheduled sentencing for Jan. 6, 2027. Ventura Amaro was charged in June 2026 along with four other members of the drug and gun network.  

Ventura Amaro was an associate of the Trinitarios transnational criminal organization who operated a drug trafficking network in Maine in coordination with the Trinitarios and under their protection. In May 2024, Ventura Amaro was allegedly kidnapped by members of the Trinitarios and held in a basement for multiple days after he took over drug distribution in certain areas of New Hampshire and Maine. In June 2025, two members of the Trinitarios were charged with kidnapping Ventura Amaro and are pending trial. In addition to the Trinitarios members and associates that he supplied, Ventura Amaro also supplied Mackenzie Bimpson, a large-scale dealer in drugs and firearms. Ventura Amaro also sold fentanyl and cocaine to Bimpson and would receive cash and firearms in exchange.

During the investigation, numerous photos and videos of, and conversations between, the defendants documenting their drug and gun conspiracy were recovered.

The charge of conspiracy to distribute, manufacture and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. The charge of conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, supervised release for up to five years and a fine of up to $250,000. 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; Thomas A. Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Boston Division; Colonel Mark B. Hall, Director of the New Hampshire State Police; and Paul J. Smith, Chief of the Littleton (N.H.) Police Department made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by Homeland Security Investigations, Boston Division; Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; United States Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division; the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire; New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office; Massachusetts State Police; the Essex County District Attorney’s Office; the Grafton County (N.H.) and Coos County (N.H.) Sheriff’s Departments; and the Berlin (N.H.), Lebanon (N.H.), Norway (Maine), Rumford (Maine), Lawrence (Mass.), New Haven (Conn.), Andover (Mass.) and Lowell (Mass.) Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys David Cutshall and Philip A. Mallard of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit are prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.

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