Monday, after pleading guilty to selling fentanyl eight days after his release from jail on a previous charge, a Rhode Island man received a ten-year prison sentence.
“Rafael Ferrer, 43, who previously used a multitude of aliases, pleaded guilty on March 14, 2023, to conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and distribution of fentanyl,” the Justice Department said in a press release Tuesday.
The Justice Department claims Ferrer acknowledged distributing fentanyl tablets and powder.
According to court documents, Ferrer had already served time for assault, drug trafficking, burglary, and firearms crimes.
According to court documents, Ferrer began trafficking fentanyl in June 2019, eight days after his most recent release from an adult jail facility.
“Ferrer had just completed a term of incarceration of over eight years for possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and for a home invasion he committed,” the Justice Department said in a statement.
The FBI’s Rhode Island Safe Streets Task Force conducted the investigation, according to the Justice Department.
U.S. Attorney Zachary Cunha described Ferrer as a “career criminal” who “peddled deadly poison onto the streets of Providence.”
Fentanyl crimes and arrests have increased across the country, according to the Bureau of Statistics. In November 2023, President Joe Biden described the problem as an American tragedy, stating that its resolution needed international cooperation, including with China.
A surge in fentanyl-related deaths spurred Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek to sign legislation recriminalizing drug possession on Monday.
The Biden administration called for more access to naloxone, which can reverse an opioid overdose, in March.
