Leah B. Foley United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts | Department of Justice
A Salem, Massachusetts man has been sentenced to more than three years in prison for his involvement in a drug trafficking organization that distributed counterfeit prescription pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine. Gino Castillo, 35, received a sentence of 37 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release from U.S. District Court Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV.
In April 2025, Castillo pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, as well as possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine. He was among 27 individuals charged since October 2022 for their roles in the conspiracy.
The organization trafficked counterfeit pills in the Lynn area. In May 2022, Castillo purchased 500 fentanyl-containing pills for redistribution. In October 2022, he assisted Lawrence Michael Nagle Jr., a leader within the organization, with moving into an apartment on Phillips Street in Salem where drugs were stored. A search at this location on October 25, 2022, uncovered counterfeit pills hidden in a safe and a toilet tank.
Lawrence Michael Nagle Jr. pleaded guilty in April 2025 and is scheduled for sentencing on August 5, 2025.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley announced the sentencing along with Stephen Belleau of the Drug Enforcement Administration's New England Division and Colonel Geoffrey D. Noble of the Massachusetts State Police. Local police departments provided assistance in the case prosecution led by Assistant U.S. Attorneys K. Nathaniel Yeager, Samuel R. Feldman, John O. Wray, and Alexandra Amrhein.
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces operation aimed at dismantling high-level criminal organizations threatening the United States through coordinated efforts.
