26 INDIVIDUALS INDICTED FOR DRUG TRAFFICKING

Rosa Emilia Rodriguez-Velez, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico, Luis S. Fraticelli, Special Agent in Charge, San Juan Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Pedro Toledo-Davila, Superintendent of the Police of Puerto Rico (POPR), David Silva-Vazquez, Commissioner of the San Juan Municipal Police Department, Miguel Pereira, Secretary of the Puerto Rico Corrections Administration and Sergio Rubio-Paredes, Acting Director of the Puerto Rico Special Investigations Bureau (NIE initials in Spanish) today announce the indictment of 26 individuals for drug trafficking within the Public Housing Project Nemesio R. Canales in Hato Rey, Puerto Rico.

On September 20, 2006, these 26 individuals were indicted by a federal grand jury in the U.S. District of Puerto Rico and charged with several counts for alleged drug trafficking. The indictment resulted from an investigation initiated by the FBI-Safe Streets Gang Task Force in 2003.

The referenced federal indictment alleges that the defendants were responsible for drug trafficking in cocaine, "crack" cocaine, heroin and marijuana at different drug points within the public housing project. The indictment further alleges that the distribution and sale of these illegal drugs were within a distance of 1,000 feet from the Nemesio R. Canales School Number 1 and the Nemesio R. Canales School Number 2, which are schools that provide elementary and secondary education. It is further alleged that some of the defendants in this indictment are responsible for murders in furtherance of this drug conspiracy.

Beginning around 4:00 a.m. this morning, approximately 200 federal, state and municipal law enforcement officers initiated efforts to arrest these subjects, as well as execute 12 federal search warrants. During the operation, 18 of these defendants were arrested, without incident, and taken into federal custody. Six of these defendants were already in federal or state custody. During the execution of the search warrants at the Nemesio R. Canales housing project, law enforcement officers seized ammunition and various quantities of suspected drugs.

One of the defendants charged in this indictment is Melvin Mendez Roldan, also known as (aka) "Mel." Mendez previously was locally charged with the murder of the trumpet player, Ricardo Morales Saez, but these charges were later dismissed by a local judge. Mendez was taken into federal custody from the Puerto Rico Corrections Administration as he was already incarcerated on state weapons law violations.

The other 17 defendants who were taken into federal custody were the following:

Barry Edward Pagan Narvaez
Hector Gonzalez Suarez
Jose L. Cabrera Cosme
Reynaldo Rodriguez Esperon
Jerry O. Rodriguez Reyes
Miguel A. Rivera Canales
Ivan De Jesus Oslan
Delia E. Sanchez Sanchez
Jonathan Ayala Garcia
Samuel A. Aponte Denton
Maria Y. Ramirez Del Valle
Myriam Figueroa Centeno
Victor Mass
Bernardo Pena Calo
Hiram J. Agron Martinez
Elmer Rivera Santana
Felipe Gonzalez Ojeda

This investigation once again demonstrates the joint commitment of federal, state, and municipal law enforcement officers towards reducing violent crime and drug trafficking in Puerto Rico. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lynn Doble-Salicrup. The public is reminded that an indictment contains only charges and is not evidence of any guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial. The U.S. government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

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