Luzerne County Man Sentenced To 50 Month’s Imprisonment For Drug Trafficking

SCRANTON – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that on December 13, 2019, United States District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani sentenced Felix Silva, a/k/a Carlos Santana, a/k/a Hector Borero, age 51, a former resident of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, to 50 months’ imprisonment for drug trafficking.

According to United States Attorney David J. Freed, Silva was apprehended by the Pennsylvania State Police during a traffic stop on Interstate 81 in December 2017.  A search of the vehicle with the assistance of a drug sniffing canine resulted in the seizure of more than 700 grams of heroin found concealed in a trap inside the door of Silva’s vehicle.  Seven-hundred grams of heroin is approximately equivalent to 28,000 retail bags of heroin.

The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration – Scranton, and the Pennsylvania State Police.  Assistant United States Attorney Michelle Olshefski prosecuted the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve 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.

This case was brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin.  Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.

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