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Jorge “King G” Rodriguez, 32, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conduct enterprise affairs through a pattern of racketeering activity (RICO) conspiracy, and conspiracy to distribute cocaine and cocaine base, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Massachusetts, said.
On Thursday, Nov. 5, Rodriguez was sentenced to 18 years in prison plus three years of supervised release.
Rodriguez was first charged with the crimes in December 2019.
Rodriguez ran a vast cocaine base distribution network that used multi-unit apartment buildings in Massachusetts known as “trap houses” to distribute the narcotics, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. Latin King gang members dealt drugs in the trap houses, obtaining their supply from Rodriguez.
During the investigation into Rodriguez and the activities of the Latin Kings, police recorded Rodriguez cooking cocaine base, directing violence against rival gang members, meting out discipline, and handling firearms use to protect the Latin Kings’ drug distribution network, the U.S. ATtorney’s Office said.
Rodriguez was busted along with 61 other members of the regional Latin Kings network in December of 2019 on drug and firearms charges. Rodriguez is the fourth defendant to be sentenced out of the 62 people arrested.
Among the agencies that worked to investigate, arrest, and prosecute Rodriguez are the U.S. Attorney’s Office, FBI, Massachusetts Department of Correction, New Bedford Police, as well as the Bristol and Suffolk county district attorney’s offices.
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