SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On September 24, 2026, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment charging 28 gang members from the municipalities of Juana Díaz, Villalba, and Coamo with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, possession and distribution of controlled substances, and firearms violations, announced Héctor Ramírez Carbó, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. This investigation was led by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Puerto Rico Police Bureau (PRPB) Ponce Strike Force, with the collaboration of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and the US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS). Today, during the arrests, the following agencies provided support: the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), US Marshals Service, and the Puerto Rico Department of Correction and Rehabilitation.
“The arrests in this case underscore the resolve of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and its law enforcement partners to uphold the rule of law and bring to justice violent criminals who threaten our communities,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Ramírez-Carbó. “These arrests reflect our determination to remove violent gangs from our communities.”
“Through the Homeland Security Task Force, the DEA and our federal, state, and local partners stand united in one mission: protecting the people of Puerto Rico. Fentanyl is an extraordinarily dangerous drug that is taking lives and devastating families, and we will continue to relentlessly pursue the violent organizations that profit from it,” said Michael Mayer, Special Agent in Charge, DEA Caribbean Division. “Operations like this demonstrate the power of our partnerships—not only to dismantle drug trafficking organizations and reduce violence, but to prevent deadly drugs from reaching our communities. Every kilogram seized, every criminal organization disrupted, and every drug point dismantled represents lives potentially saved. The DEA Caribbean Division remains unwavering in its commitment to a Fentanyl Free America and to keeping our citizens safe.”
The indictment alleges that from 2022, the drug trafficking organization distributed heroin, fentanyl, cocaine base (crack), cocaine, marijuana, Tramadol, and Clonazepam within 1,000 feet of the Enudio Negrón, Maximino Miranda, Villa Del Parque Public Housing Projects (PHPs), the Pastillo Ward, and areas near those locations, all for significant financial gain and profit.
The object of the conspiracy was to distribute wholesale quantities and street amount quantities of controlled substances at the Enudio Negón Public housing Project (PHP), Maximino Miranda PHP, Villa Del Parque PHP, also known as Kennedy PHP, as well as the Pastillo Ward and areas nearby. This organization also transported and distributed kilogram quantities of cocaine in the continental United States. The defendants communicated with each other using two-way radios and cell phones, via instant messaging and social media.
It is alleged that members of the drug trafficking organization participated in acts of violence, including shootings and murders, to maintain control of the drug trafficking in the areas they controlled.
The defendants acted in different roles to further the goals of the drug trafficking conspiracy, including as leaders, suppliers, drug point owners, enforcers, runners, sellers, lookouts, and facilitators. Twenty (20) defendants are facing one charge of possession of firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and fourteen (14) of those defendants are facing one count of possession of a machine gun in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. The defendants charged in the indictment are:
[1] Jeremy José Maldonado-Rivera, a.k.a. “Jere/El Patrón/La J/El Loco”
[2] Jerome Javier Cruz-Santiago
[3] Javier Sánchez-Pérez, a.k.a. “Javi/Javielito”
[4] José Armando Rodríguez-López, a.k.a. “Armandito/Mamando”
[5] Roric Harvey Núñez-García, a.k.a. “El Colo/Colorao/Rubio”
[6] Jomar Javier Cruz-Santiago, a.k.a. “Truco/Truko”
[7] Anthony Cruz-Rodríguez, a.k.a. “Anton”
[8] Yamil Hernández-De Jesús, a.k.a. “Pulpi/Yamito/Yamo”
[9] Jonathan Daniel Colón-Santiago, a.k.a. “Curry”
[10] Eliezer Steven De Jesús-Martínez
[11] Carlos Omar Costales-González, a.k.a. “Maro/Goldo”
[12] Cristobal Manuel Santiago-López, a.k.a. “Cristo”
[13] Jadiel Carlid Gaston-García
[14] Miguel Ángel Alvarado-Ortiz, a.k.a. “Mikito/Minguito/Mickeyto/Miko”
[15] Jorge Esteban Sosa-Pomales
[16] Jayson Santiago-Rivera
[17] Kevin Camacho-Franceschi, a.k.a. “Hongo/Honguito”
[18] Luis Daniel Colón-Santiago, a.k.a. “Wiso”
[19] Christian Jasnel Cruz-García, a.k.a. “Oreja”
[20] Luis Armando Rivera-Merlo, a.k.a. “El Negrito/El Negro de Guayanilla”
[21] Emmanuel Santiago-Bermúdez, a.k.a. “27”
[22] Wilbert Torres-Cortés, a.k.a. “Wilbul”
[23] Jonathan Adolfo Santiago-Guzmán, a.k.a. “Manota”
[24] Héctor Jomar Torres-Rodríguez, a.k.a. “Changa”
[25] Luis David Colón-Malavé, a.k.a. “Willo”
[26] Hermarilis Rosado-Ortiz, a.k.a. “Elma/Patita”
[27] Yarielis Michelle Morales-Rodríguez, a.k.a. “Golda”
[28] Nitzaliz Yadielis Rivera-Curet
Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) and Chief of the Gang Section Alberto López-Rocafort, Deputy Chief of the Gang Section, AUSA Teresa Zapata-Valladares, and AUSA Joseph Russell are in charge of the prosecution of the case. If convicted on the drug charges, the defendants face a minimum sentence of 10 years, and up to life in prison. If convicted of both the drug and firearms charges in Count Six, the defendants face a minimum sentence of 15 years, and up to life in prison. The defendants charged with possession of machine guns in furtherance of drug trafficking in Count Seven face a mandatory minimum sentence of thirty years in prison to be served consecutive to any sentence imposed on the drug trafficking charges. All defendants are facing a narcotics forfeiture allegation of $4,158,080.
This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF San Juan comprises agents and officers from the following federal partners: FBI, ICE-HSI, CBP (OFO, AMO and Border Patrol), the U.S. Marshals Service for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, DEA, ATF, IRS, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Department of State, and the U.S. Secret Service, the Puerto Rico/U.S. Virgin Islands HIDTA, TSA, FAA, and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Districts of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The HSTF also has the following state and local law enforcement partners as participating agencies: the Puerto Rico Police Department; the San Juan, Carolina, Guaynabo, Barceloneta, and Ponce Municipal Police Departments, the Puerto Rico National Guard – Counter Drug Program; the Puerto Rico Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation; the Puerto Rico Internal Revenue Service (Hacienda); the Puerto Rico Port Authority; and the Virgin Islands Police Department.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
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Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office — Puerto Rico — U.S. Department of Justice press release.