John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ERNESTO LUIS DELGADO, also known as “Pancho," 34, of Waterbury, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to 120 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for trafficking cocaine.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Delgado was a member of a drug trafficking organization in Waterbury that received kilogram-quantities of cocaine in the U.S. Mail from a source of supply in Puerto Rico, and then distributed the drug in the Waterbury area. Delgado and other then mailed the cash proceeds generated from the sale of the cocaine, at a rate of approximately $25,000 per kilogram, to their supplier in Puerto Rico. On July 15, 2017, investigators seized a parcel containing $100,000 in cash that Delgado had mailed at a post office in Waterbury.
Delgado was arrested on Dec. 1, 2017. At the time of his arrest, he was in the process of receiving two parcels, each containing two kilograms of cocaine.
Delegado has been detained since his arrest. On Jan. 28, 2019, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, five kilograms or more of cocaine.
On Sept. 12, 2018, Judge Bolden sentenced Jose L. Rivera, 41, of Waterbury, to 60 months of imprisonment and four years of supervised release for his role in this cocaine trafficking ring.
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Drug Enforcement Administration and Waterbury Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney S. Dave Vatti.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
