Crime

9 indicted on drug, gun trafficking charges

The defendants were among the 66 arrested in June in a massive gang sweep in Eastern Massachusetts.

August 30, 2016

1 minute to read

Nine people from the Boston area were indicted Monday for allegedly being part of gangs that trafficked guns and drugs, the attorney general’s office said.

The defendants, who make up seven different cases, were among the 66 arrested in June in a massive gang sweep in Eastern Massachusetts.

Wilmer Reyes, 23; Anilber Marquez, 21; Joseph Lorenzo, 26; Virginia Lebron, 36; Miguel Lorenzo, 26; Eddie Lorenzo, 28; Yunisleydi Santuce, 31; Jonathan Vasquez, 21; and Jesse Cardona-Restrepo, 21, were indicted by a Suffolk County grand jury on a variety of charges including trafficking drugs like heroin, cocaine, and fentanyl and unlawful firearm possession, Attorney General Maura Healey’s office said in a statement.

All are from Boston except for Cardona-Restrepo, who is from Chelsea.

“We allege these individuals are involved in a criminal operation that brought deadly drugs and illegal guns into our communities,” Healey said in the statement. “Our office is focused on combatting gun violence and the opioid epidemic at all levels and will continue to work with our partners to disrupt these criminal networks.”

Prosecutors alleged that the defendants are members or associates of the 18^th Street Gang and the East Side Money Gang.

“ATF will continue to combat firearms trafficking with our federal, state, local law enforcement and prosecutorial partners, in the attempt to prevent these firearms from being used by prohibited individuals in violent criminal acts, which affect the quality of life in our communities,” said Mickey Leadingham, the special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Boston.