A Chelsea resident was sentenced Tuesday in federal court in Boston for distributing cocaine in Massachusetts and Puerto Rico.
Jose Ramirez-Baez, 40, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs to 43 months in prison and five years of supervised release.
In October 2016, Ramirez-Baez pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, two counts of attempted possession with the intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, and three counts of money laundering.
From June 2014 to March 2016, Ramirez-Baez shipped large quantities of cocaine from Puerto Rico to Massachusetts via both the United States Postal Service and the United Parcel Services. In December 2015, investigators in Puerto Rico seized two packages bound for Ramirez-Baez that contained five kilograms of cocaine. These packages ultimately led to Ramirez-Baez’s arrest and conviction. In addition, Ramirez-Baez laundered over $200,000 in cash by depositing drug proceeds into an account bearing the name J&Y Landscaping in an effort to conceal the fact that the proceeds were derived from drug trafficking.
Acting United States Attorney William D. Weinreb; Shelly Binkowski, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Joel P. Garland, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston; and Colonel Richard D. McKeon, Superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Rosen of Weinreb’s Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.