Leah B. Foley United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts | Department of Justice
A Dominican national who previously lived in Lawrence under a false identity has pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy charges related to fentanyl distribution. Eduardo Morales-Perez, also known as Yenni Rafael Guerrero Aybar, admitted on September 2, 2025, to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute controlled substances. Sentencing is set for October 8, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton.
The case stems from a March 2018 undercover operation during which law enforcement arranged a cash pickup as part of a money laundering investigation. An individual delivered $275,090 in cash at the meeting location while driving a white Volvo registered to Morales-Perez’s girlfriend. The vehicle was later seen at a property in Peabody.
In May 2018, during surveillance at the Peabody address, Morales-Perez was observed exiting a truck with acetone—a chemical often used in making fentanyl analogues—and bringing it into the residence. A search of the property resulted in the seizure of over 2.8 kilograms of fentanyl and its analogues, more than five kilograms of ANPP (a precursor chemical for fentanyl), drug paraphernalia including a kilogram pill press, and $130,000 in cash stored above a light fixture.
The charge carries a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least three years and up to life on supervised release, and up to $1 million in fines. Morales-Perez faces deportation after serving any sentence imposed. Sentences are determined by federal judges based on sentencing guidelines and relevant statutes.
“United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division made the announcement today. Valuable assistance was provided by the Massachusetts State Police and the Medford, Peabody and Ipswich Police Departments. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren A. Graber and Brian J. Sullivan of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit are prosecuting the case.”
