Press Release  Lawrence Man Pleads Guilty, Sentenced to 10 to 12 Years in Prison for Major Heroin, Fentanyl Operation

Salem — A Lawrence man has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to state prison in connection with a major drug trafficking operation in which authorities seized a large amount of heroin and fentanyl, Attorney General Maura Healey announced today.

Jose C. Casellas, a.k.a Rafael Nicolas Lopez-Carrasco, age 41, of Lawrence, pleaded guilty today in Essex Superior Court to the charges of Trafficking Heroin between 100 and 200 Grams, Possession with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl, Unlawful Possession of a Firearm (3 counts), and Possession of a Firearm with an Obliterated Serial Number.

After the plea was entered, Judge John Lu sentenced Casellas to 10 to 12 years in state prison.

“The sharp increase of fentanyl is causing deaths in our communities more quickly than we have ever seen,” said AG Healey. “Alarmingly, recent numbers show that more than half of the confirmed opioid-related deaths last year with a toxicology screen involved this deadly drug. We thank our partners in law enforcement for their work on this case and will continue to work with them to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who are distributing fentanyl and heroin on our streets.”

“We thank Attorney General Healey and her office for ensuring this prosecution resulted in a significant state prison term, which is entirely appropriate for any criminal who trafficks opiate and opioid drugs,” said Colonel Richard D. McKeon, superintendent of the Massachusetts State Police. “Troopers from two of our units, and their partners in the DEA and at local departments, did superb work dismantling this drug trafficking operation and taking a large amount of this poison off the street.”

Casellas was arrested in June 2015 in a joint operation involving Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Attorney General’s Office, the Massachusetts State Police Transportation Drug Unit (TDU), the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Lawrence, Andover, and Methuen Police Departments. He was later indicted in Essex Superior Court.

In June 2015, authorities from the State Police TDU began an investigation into a drug trafficking operation in the Lawrence area that they believed was responsible for distributing heroin to Massachusetts and New Hampshire. 

Authorities arrested Casellas in Andover and a search warrant was executed at a Lawrence residence out of which he ran his operation. At the time of arrest, authorities seized large quantities of heroin and fentanyl, more than 11 kilograms in cutting agent, three guns, kilo presses, digital scales, and other packaging and distribution materials at the residence.

In the continuing fight to combat heroin and opioid overdoses and deaths, AG Healey proposed legislation in August 2015 that would establish the state crime of fentanyl trafficking. With the support of law enforcement and those in the recovery community, AG Healey and House Judiciary Chairman John Fernandes (D-Milford) filed the bill and it was signed into law by Gov. Charles Baker in November 2015. The law went into effect on Feb. 23.

Recent data from the Department of Public Health indicates that out of the estimated 1,526 deaths due to opioids last year, more than half with a toxicology screen involved fentanyl.

Shortly before taking office, AG Healey announced the formation of an internal task force to aggressively combat the opioid and prescription drug abuse crisis in Massachusetts. AG Healey has vowed to use a multi-faceted approach to educate prescribers, pursue illegal drug traffickers and pill mills, and expand access to recovery and treatment programs in order to address this public health crisis.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Megan McLaughlin of AG Healey’s Enterprise and Major Crimes Division, with assistance from State Police assigned to the AG’s Office, the Massachusetts State Police Transportation Drug Unit (TDU), the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Lawrence, Andover and Methuen Police Departments and the AG’s Digital Evidence Lab.

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