New York man sentenced to 11 years in prison for distributing deadly drugs

A New York man was sentenced to 132 months in prison for participating in a conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin in New Jersey from locations in Manhattan.

Juan Carlos Merced Moreno, aka “Samuel,” 45, of Manhattan, New York, pleaded guilty on Dec. 20, 2022, before U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi to a superseding information charging him with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing fentanyl, 50 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing methamphetamine, and 100 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of heroin.

According to U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger, documents filed in this case and statements made in court, Moreno admitted that from November 2020 through January 2021 he conspired with others to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin.

Moreno admitted participating in the conspiracy from locations in Manhattan and that some of the controlled substances were transported to New Jersey.

Sellinger said Judge Cecchi imposed the sentence on July 25, 2023, in Newark federal court.

In addition to the prison term, Judge Cecchi sentenced Moreno to four years of supervised release.

More than 106,000 people in the U.S. died from a drug-involved overdose in 2021, including illicit drugs and prescription opioids.

A 2019 report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics found that fentanyl is the drug most commonly identified in fatal overdoses.

In 2017, fentanyl was associated with 38.9% of all drug overdose deaths, an increase from 2016, when it was associated with 29% of all fatal overdoses. This is the second year that CDC analyzed fatal overdoses in this way.

In 2017, heroin was associated with 22.8% of all fatal overdoses. Cocaine, a stimulant, was involved in 21.3% and methamphetamine, also a stimulant, was involved in 13.3%.

According to the CDC, overdoses death rates involving psychostimulants, including methamphetamines and cocaine, have been rising since 2010. In 2017, the number of people dying from overdoses involving psychostimulants rose above 10,000, an increase of 37% from the year before.

Overall, drug overdose deaths rose from 2019 to 2021 with more than 106,000 drug overdose deaths reported in 2021.

Drug overdose deaths involving heroin rose from 1,960 in 1999 to 15,482 in 2017 before trending down to 13,165 deaths in 2020 and 9,173 deaths in 2021.

Deaths involving synthetic opioids other than methadone (primarily fentanyl) continued to rise with 70,601 overdose deaths reported in 2021.

Those involving stimulants, including cocaine or psychostimulants with abuse potential (primarily methamphetamine) rose from 547 in 1999 to 23,837 in 2020 and continued to increase to 32,537 deaths in 2021.