Massachusetts Man Pleads Guilty To Fentanyl Trafficking

          CONCORD – United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced today that Walker Manuel Moreta, 32, of Lawrence, Massachusetts, pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, fentanyl.

          According to court documents and statements made in court, between at least January of 2017 through July of 2017, Moreta, with the assistance of others, sold quantities of fentanyl to multiple individuals, including customers from New Hampshire.  Moreta and his co-conspirators often operated out of a location on Water Street in Lawrence, Massachusetts.  As part of an investigation of Moreta, a cooperating individual purchased over 100 grams of fentanyl from Moreta between May and June of 2017.  On July 6, 2017, Moreta was arrested and had 19 grams of fentanyl on his person.

          Moreta is scheduled to be sentenced on July 29, 2019.

          Two co-conspirators, Miguel Arias-Velasquez and Miguel Vasquez, previously pleaded guilty.  Arias-Velasquez was sentenced to serve 48 months in prison.  Vasquez is awaiting sentencing.

          “Traffickers of fentanyl and heroin continue to cause enormous damage to communities throughout New Hampshire,” said U.S. Attorney Murray.  “We are working tirelessly alongside our law enforcement partners to identify, prosecute, and incarcerate those who are responsible for the distribution of these deadly substances.”

          This matter was investigated by the DEA, with assistance from the Massachusetts State Police, the United States Marshals Service, the New Hampshire State Police, the Lawrence Police Department, with assistance from the Portsmouth Police Department, the Dover Police Department, and the Rockingham County Attorney’s Office.  The case is being prosecuted by First Assistant U.S. Attorney John J. Farley.

###