Bronx Man Sentenced To 51 Months In Prison For Transporting Multiple Kilograms Of Heroin As Part Of A Cross-Country Drug Distribution Conspiracy

TRENTON, N.J. – A Bronx, New York, man was sentenced to 51 months in prison for transporting fifteen kilograms of heroin hidden in a secret compartment on Christmas Eve in 2014, United States Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Dany Francisco-Valerio, 44, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan to an Information charging him with conspiracy to distribute heroin. Judge Sheridan imposed the sentence today in federal court.    

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

In or around December 2014, Francisco-Valerio engaged in a conspiracy with members of a drug trafficking organization to transport and distribute kilogram quantities of heroin.  On December 24, 2014, Francisco-Valerio was arrested in Warren County while transporting fifteen kilograms of heroin contained in a hidden compartment in his vehicle. Vionel Rondon Cortorreal, Francisco-Valerio’s conspirator, has also pleaded guilty before Judge Sheridan and is awaiting sentencing.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Sheridan sentenced Francisco-Valerio to 3 years of supervised release. 

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited the Drug Enforcement Administration New Jersey Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Valerie A. Nickerson in Newark, and officers of the New Jersey State Police, under the direction of Acting Superintendent Col. Patrick J. Callahan, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing. 

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Thomas S. Kearney and Jamari Buxton of the U.S. Attorney’s Office OC/Gangs Unit in Newark.

Defense counsel: John D. Lynch, Esq., Jersey City, New Jersey