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Press Release

Hazleton Man Indicted For Cocaine Trafficking

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Middle District of Pennsylvania

SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Ricardo Jimenez-Rodriguez, age 34, of Hazelton, Pennsylvania, was indicted on March 3, 2020, by a federal grand jury on drug trafficking charges.

According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, the indictment alleges that Rodriguez possessed with the intent to distribute over five kilograms of cocaine on February 23, 2020, in Conyngham, Pennsylvania. 

The case was investigated by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Pennsylvania State Police. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean A. Camoni is prosecuting the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program that has been historically successful in bringing together all levels of law enforcement to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. The Department of Justice reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime. 

Indictments and Criminal Informations are only allegations.  All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.

A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.

The maximum penalty under federal law for this offense is life imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine.  Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the Judge is also required to consider and weigh a number of factors, including the nature, circumstances, and seriousness of the offense; the history and characteristics of the defendant; and the need to punish the defendant, protect the public, and provide for the defendant's educational, vocational, and medical needs.  For these reasons, the statutory maximum penalty for the offense is not an accurate indicator of the potential sentence for a specific defendant.

 

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Updated March 4, 2020

Topics
Drug Trafficking
Project Safe Neighborhoods