Passaic County Man Admits to Conspiring to Distribute Fentanyl

Newark, N.J. – A Passaic County man admitted to distributing approximately 500 pills of fentanyl, United States Attorney Alina Habba announced.

Angelo Restituyo-Garcia, 34, of Paterson, New Jersey, pleaded guilty before Senior U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden to one count of conspiring to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 846, and one count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, in violation of Title 21, United States Code, Section 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B).

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

From in or about March of 2020 through May of 2020, Restituyo-Garcia conspired with others to distribute fentanyl.  On May 1, 2020, Restituyo-Garcia delivered nearly 500 pills of compressed fentanyl totaling more than 50 grams for which he accepted $2,750 in payment.

The conspiracy charge and the possession with intent to distribute charge are both punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 40 years in prison and a maximum $5,000,000 fine.    Each charge carries with it a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for October 1, 2025.

U.S. Attorney Habba credited special agents with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Cheryl Ortiz in Newark, New Jersey as well as investigators with the Passaic County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Prosecutor Camelia Valdes.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the Untied States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.  Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark J. McCarren of the Office’s Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.

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Defense counsel: Adalgiza Nunez, Assistant Federal Public Defender, Newark