Providence Man Pleads Guilty to Trafficking Fentanyl, Theft of Government Funds, Aggravated Identity Theft

According to information presented to the court, in September 2023,  following a two-month investigation into his drug trafficking activities, members of the Rhode Island DEA Drug Task Force sought and executed a court authorized search warrant at Nunez Rodriguez’s Providence apartment, where they seized 613 grams of fentanyl and a total of approximately $25,000 in cash.

Additionally, task force agents discovered 28 United States Treasury checks addressed to different individuals, 39 federal tax returns in envelopes addressed to the IRS, and personal identifying information belonging to 976 individuals.

A follow-up investigation by Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation found that 436 tax returns had been fraudulently filed using the Providence address listed. The investigation also determined that Nunez Rodriguez had fraudulently obtained 43 U.S. Treasury checks in amounts ranging from $1,400 to $1,800. Fifteen had been deposited into bank accounts that he controlled; 28 additional checks were found to be in his possession at the time of his arrest.

Nunez Rodriquez is scheduled to be sentenced on February 12, 2025. The defendant’s sentences will be determined by a federal district judge after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Paul F. Daly, Jr.

The matter was investigated by the Rhode Island DEA Drug Task Force and IRS Criminal Investigation.

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