CONCORD - Dennis Chaney, 31, of Rochester, pleaded guilty in federal court to participating in a fentanyl drug trafficking conspiracy, United States Attorney Scott W. Murray announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, as a result of an ongoing drug trafficking investigation, agents and task force officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration learned that on March 12, 2018, Chaney intended to travel from New Hampshire to a location in Lawrence, Massachusetts to purchase 200 grams of a controlled substance. Agents conducted surveillance in the area of the transaction and observed Chaney’s vehicle arrive. They then followed the vehicle toward New Hampshire and passed the license plate and their observations on to the New Hampshire State Police. A trooper observed the vehicle and stopped the vehicle for traffic violations. The trooper subsequently used his drug detection dog who alerted to Chaney’s vehicle. A search warrant subsequently was executed on the vehicle, which resulted in the discovery of approximately 225 grams of fentanyl.
On March 14, 2018, Chaney telephoned his source in Lawrence, Massachusetts and ordered an additional 100 grams of a controlled substance. Agents conducted surveillance in the area of the transaction and observed Chaney’s vehicle arrive. They then followed the vehicle toward New Hampshire and passed the license plate and their observations on to the New Hampshire State Police. A trooper observed the vehicle and stopped the vehicle for traffic violations. The trooper subsequently used his drug detection dog who alerted to Chaney’s vehicle. A subsequent search of the vehicle resulted in the seizure of approximately 98 grams of fentanyl.
During the investigation, Chaney ordered and purchased approximately 845 grams of fentanyl.
Chaney is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 22, 2019.
“This case is an example of the way that the law enforcement community is working together to stop the flow of fentanyl into the Granite State," said U.S. Attorney Murray. “Those who chose to distribute this deadly drug should understand that they will be arrested and prosecuted. We will continue to use all resources at our disposal to protect the public from those who choose to bring fentanyl into New Hampshire."
The case was a collaborative investigation that involved the DEA; the New Hampshire State Police; the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office; the Nashua Police Department; the Massachusetts State Police; the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office; the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office; the Essex County District Attorney’s Office; the Internal Revenue Service; Immigration and
Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations; United States Customs and Border Protection Boston Field Office; the United States Marshals Service; the United States Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service; the Manchester Police Department; the Lisbon Police Department; the Littleton Police Department; the Seabrook Police Department; the Haverhill (MA) Police Department; the Methuen (MA) Police Department; the Lowell (MA) Police Department; and the Maine State Police.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Georgiana L. Konesky, Seth R. Aframe and Debra M. Walsh.
This case was supported by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF program is a federal multi-agency, multi-jurisdictional task force that supplies supplemental federal funding to federal and state agencies involved in the identification, investigation, and prosecution of major drug trafficking organizations.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
