A Mexican national, previously deported twice from the U.S., has been sentenced in a Boston federal court for his involvement in a conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and cocaine and launder drug proceeds.
According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, 33-year-old Jesus Lopez Medina was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper to five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. After serving his sentence, he will face deportation. In December 2024, Lopez Medina pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess controlled substances with intent to distribute, as well as one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Court records indicate that an investigation into a Mexico-based drug trafficking network began in August 2023. This organization was allegedly responsible for shipping large quantities of fentanyl and other narcotics from Ontario, California, to Massachusetts using tractor-trailers. Investigators reportedly communicated with Reginal Cazares, an alleged conspirator in Arizona, who, in December 2023, instructed law enforcement to deliver drug proceeds to Lopez Medina in California. On December 4, 2023, an undercover officer handed over $202,090 in drug money—collected from accomplices in Massachusetts—to Lopez Medina in Ontario, California. Then, in February 2024, Cazares allegedly arranged for 13 kilograms of drugs to be retrieved from Lopez Medina. On February 16, Lopez Medina delivered 4 kilograms of fentanyl and 9 kilograms of cocaine to a cooperating witness in Ontario, California.
Cazares and two other co-defendants have pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial.
The sentencing announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley and Acting Special Agent in Charge Stephen Belleau of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Boston Field Division. Several agencies contributed to the investigation, including the DEA offices in Riverside, Bakersfield, and Tucson, as well as the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, the Inland Regional Narcotics Enforcement Team, the Methuen Police Department, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations in Boston. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Samuel R. Feldman from the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit.
This operation is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which establishes multi-agency task force teams to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations. The initiative aims to dismantle major drug traffickers, money laundering networks, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations by fostering cooperation between law enforcement agencies and prosecutors.
