Puerto Rico Man Charged With Federal Cocaine Offense

BOSTON – A Puerto Rico man was arrested today and charged in federal court in Worcester for his role in a cocaine conspiracy.

William Torres, a/k/a Poro, 34, of Tao Baja, P.R., was charged with conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. Torres will appear before a U.S. Magistrate Judge in San Juan, P.R., before being transferred to Massachusetts.

According to court documents, a federal investigation revealed that, around October 2018, Torres made arrangements for his associate, Melvin Burgos, to obtain a kilogram of cocaine from Julio Rivera. Torres provided Burgos with Rivera’s number, and on Nov. 1, 2018, the two met at a storage facility in Worcester. Police subsequently stopped both Burgos and Rivera, and inside the vehicle driven by Burgos, they found approximately 900 grams of cocaine; inside Rivera’s vehicle, law enforcement found a phone that had been used to contact Torres. Burgos and Rivera were arrested on state charges that day and have since been charged in federal court in Worcester.

Torres faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years and up to 40 years in prison, a minimum of four years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of $5 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Brian D. Boyle, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bill Abely and John Mulcahy of Lelling’s Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.

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