FEDS: LEAD FENTANYL TRAFFICKER W/ CAPE TIES “SUBJECT TO...

HN NOTE: The drug trafficking organization reportedly operated in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island, with ties to Cape Cod, according to the media statement from United States Attorney Leah B. Foley. HN has reached out to the Yarmouth Police detective and patrol divisions to possibly learn more about their reported involvement in the case. So far, the reported “special assistance” of the YPD remains unclear… HN has also reached out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for more info… and will provide official updates and/or clarifications as they become available…

3:00 P.M. UPDATE: According to 77 pages of Federal court filings received by HN from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the investigation began when agents began intercepting the phone conversations of a Cape Cod-based Fentanyl distributor during Yarmouth area surveillance, including wiretaps… “As explained in more detail below, the wiretap investigation and surveillance has showed that [REBECCA] BARTHOLOMEW is a Cape Cod-based fentanyl distributor. On April 11, 2022, law enforcement officers stopped a car driven by [REBECCA] BARTHOLOMEW and Heather DiGerolomo in Yarmouth, Massachusetts. BARTHOLOMEW had approximately 90 grams of fentanyl in her bra and DiGerolomo had approximately 80 grams of fentanyl in her bra. Based on information from local police officers, agents believe that BARTHOLOMEW and DiGerolomo live together in a residence on Cape Cod. Agents have seen BARTHOLOMEW meeting with ALCANTARA’s couriers on numerous occasions in public places like inside the diaper aisle of the Wal-Mart in Fall River, Massachusetts and inside the parking lot of the Price Rite Supermarket, also in Fall River, Massachusetts….” CLICK HERE FOR EARLIER HN REPORT REGARDING REBECCA BARTHOLOMEW… [DEVELOPING]

*** DEALS WENT DOWN IN THE DIAPER AISLE AT WAL-MART *** From surveillance video of Bartholomew, attached to court docs… ALCANTARA instructed BARTHOLOMEW to meet his courier in the diaper aisle of the Fall River Wal-Mart saying (“I’m here go for the Pampers.”)

TODAY’S D.O.J. MEDIA STATEMENT – 3/28/2025 – NO BOOKING PHOTOS AVAILABLE:

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – A Providence, R.I. man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for leading a drug trafficking organization (DTO) operating in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Estarlin Ortiz-Alcantara, 38, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Allison D. Burroughs to 10 years in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release. The defendant is subject to deportation upon completion of the imposed sentence. In December 2023, Ortiz-Alcantara pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and one count of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. Ortiz-Alcantara was charged in July 2022 and subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury in August 2022.

Between approximately February 2021 and July 2022, Ortiz-Alcantara managed a DTO that distributed fentanyl in Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. As part of his DTO’s operations, Ortiz-Alcantara controlled a stash house in Fall River to store, process and distribute fentanyl and employ numerous individuals who assisted with mixing, packaging and distributing fentanyl. During a search of Ortiz-Alcantara’s stash house in July 2022, more than 12 kilograms of fentanyl, as well as items consistent with running a fentanyl business, including blenders, a hydraulic press and baggies were seized.

United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Division; New Bedford Police Chief Paul Oliveira; and Fairhaven Police Chief Michael J. Myers made the announcement today. Special assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police; Homeland Security Investigations; Bristol County Sherriff’s Office; and the Fall River, Taunton, Attleboro, Scituate, Yarmouth, Providence (R.I.) and West Warwick (R.I.) Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Mulcahy of the Criminal Division prosecuted the case.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

INDIVIDUALS surveilled during Fentanyl Trafficking investigation with Southeastern Mass and Cape Cod ties… (according to 77-page report)

*** SUSPECT HAD A CHILD WITH HIM *** INDIVIDUALS surveilled during Fentanyl Trafficking investigation with Southeastern Mass and Cape Cod ties… (according to 77-page report)

SEARCH WARRANT RESULTS FROM LEAD AGENT’S REPORT:

I have participated in the execution of numerous search warrants at the residences
of drug traffickers similar to the targets of this investigation. In a substantial number of
residential searches executed in connection with the drug investigations in which I have been involved, the following types of drug-related and/or money laundering evidence typically have been recovered in both conventional and electronic formats:

a. controlled substances;
b. paraphernalia for packaging, processing, diluting, weighing, and distributing
controlled substances, such as scales, funnels, sifters, grinders, glass panes and
mirrors, razor blades, plastic bags, microwave ovens, heat-sealing devices, and
diluents such as mannitol, mannite, and inositol;
c. books, records, receipts, notes, ledgers, letters, and other papers relating to the distribution of controlled substances, travel for the purpose of acquiring and/or distributing controlled substances, and to monetary transactions involving the proceeds from the sale of controlled substances;
d. personal books, papers, and other electronic devices reflecting names, addresses, telephone numbers, and other contact or identification data relating to the distribution of controlled substances, money laundering, and the criminal use of communication facilities;
e. cash, currency, and records relating to the generation of income from the sale of controlled substances and the expenditure of such income, including money orders, wire transfers, cashier’s checks and receipts, bank statements, passbooks, checkbooks, and check registers, as well as consumer items such as electronic equipment, vehicles, jewelry, and precious metals such as gold and silver, and precious gems such as diamonds – it should be noted that possession of the valuable items referenced in this paragraph, particularly by individuals with no substantial legitimate source of income, is evidence of drug trafficking as opposed to drug use;
f. documents and other records indicating travel in interstate and foreign commerce, such as maps, GPS coordinates, navigation coordinates, travel itineraries, plane tickets, boarding passes, motel and hotel receipts, passports and visas, credit card receipts, and telephone bills and related communications;
g. cellular telephones, smart phones, electronic tablet devices, and other electronic media utilized for communication, transportation, and data acquisition and retention purposes related to acquiring and distributing illegal drugs and proceeds, including incoming and outgoing call and text message logs, contact lists, photo and video galleries, sent and received text messages, online searches and sites viewed via the internet, online or electronic communications sent and received (including email, chat, and instant messages), sent and received audio files, navigation, mapping, and GPS files, telephone settings (including contact lists) text messages, and related identifying information such as telephone identification numbers, call forwarding information, messages drafted but not sent, and voice
messages;
h. firearms and other dangerous weapons; and
i. identification evidence and/or indicia, such as cell phones with particular
numbers, mail, deeds, leases, rental agreements, photographs, bills, and
identification documents, that tend to identify the person(s) in residence,
occupancy, control, or ownership of subject premises and/or subject
communication devices.

“174. Based on all of the information I have obtained during the course of this
investigation, and for the reasons more specifically set forth herein, I believe that the Target Subjects are engaged in drug trafficking and/or money laundering. I believe that evidence of their drug trafficking and/or money laundering offenses will be found inside each of the Target Locations and on certain cellular telephones, computers, or electronic equipment seized therefrom.”

LIST OF SOME OF THE “TARGETED SUBJECTS”

FROM THE LEAD FEDERAL AGENT’S REPORT: “This affidavit is being submitted in support of a criminal complaint against the following individuals (collectively, the ‘Target Subjects’)”:

A. Estarlin Ortiz-ALCANTARA, a/k/a Fernande Luis Rivera
(“ALCANTARA”);
B. Yeury Garcia-RODRIGUEZ, a/k/a Benjamin Osorio-Pizarro
(“RODRIGUEZ”);
C. Mario Rafael Dominguez-ORTIZ (“ORTIZ”);
D. Edwin COLLAZO (“COLLAZO”);
E. Rebecca BARTHOLOMEW; (“BARHOLOMEW” WAS ARRESTED DURING A YARMOUTH POLICE TRAFFIC STOP W/ 90 GRAMS OF FENTANYL HIDDEN IN HER BRA – HER PASSENGER, HEATHER DIGEROLOMO, REPORTEDLY HAD 80 GRAMS OF FENTANYL IN HER BRA – IN APRIL 2022)
F. Michael PACHECO (“PACHECO”);
G. Jose SANTIAGO, a/k/a Cheo (“SANTIAGO”);
H. Jason CRUZ (“CRUZ”); and
I. FNU LNU 1,