Manchester Man Sentenced to 85 Months in Prison for Fentanyl Trafficking

            CONCORD – Alvaro Garcia, 30, of Manchester, was sentenced to 85 months in prison for participating in a conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, announced United States Attorney Scott W. Murray.

             According to court documents and statements made in court, the defendant participated with three co-defendants in a conspiracy to distribute fentanyl in New Hampshire.  On several occasions, the defendant met in Nashua with his co-defendant suppliers from Massachusetts to obtain drugs that he then distributed in the Manchester area.  The conspiracy involved in excess of 1.2 kilograms of fentanyl.

            All of Garcia’s co-defendants also have been convicted.  Migdalia Cintron was sentenced to 30 months in prison.  Ramon Paniagua Perez was sentenced to 52 months in prison.  David Alexander Arias was sentenced to 41 months in prison. 

            Alvaro Garcia previously pleaded guilty on August 30, 2018.

            “Fentanyl traffickers who choose to operate in New Hampshire should expect to be arrested, prosecuted and imprisoned,” said U.S. Attorney Murray.  “We are committed to working closely with enforcement agencies at all levels of government to end the distribution of this deadly drug. This case is a testament to the effectiveness of coordinated law enforcement efforts.” 

            “Fentanyl is causing deaths in record numbers and DEA’s top priority is to aggressively pursue anyone who distributes this poison,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Brian D. Boyle.  “Today’s sentence not only holds Mr. Garcia accountable for his crimes but serves as a warning to those traffickers who are fueling the opioid epidemic.”

            This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration with assistance from the New Hampshire State Police, the Manchester Police Department, the Nashua Police Department, the Massachusetts State Police, the United States Marshals Service, and the United States Probation Office.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Seth Aframe.

            This case was supported by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF).  The OCDETF program is a federal multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations.  

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