Press Release  Lynn Man Pleads Guilty, Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Operating Major Oxycodone Distribution Network in Lynn

LYNN — A Lynn man has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to two years in state prison in connection with running an organized criminal network that distributed large quantities of oxycodone in the Lynn area, Attorney General Maura Healey announced today.

Hipolito Gratini, of Lynn, age 27, pleaded guilty today in Essex Superior Court to charges of Distribution/Possession with Intent to Distribute a Class B Substance, Oxycodone (six counts) and Conspiracy to Violate the Controlled Substances Act (one count). Following the plea, Judge Thomas Drechsler sentenced Gratini to serve two years to two years and a day in state prison, followed by three years of probation on the conditions that he submit to random drug screens and not use illegal drugs.

Gratini ran an extensive drug distribution network in the Lynn area that obtained and sold drugs allegedly with Javier Bello, of Lynn, age 21, Emmanuel Deleon of Lynn, age 24, and Xavier Rios of Peabody, age 24.

Bello, Deleon and Rios were arrested in Lynn on Oct. 26, 2015. Gratini was arrested on Nov. 6, 2015 in Peabody. All four were arrested by State Police assigned to the AG’s Office with assistance from local authorities.

The AG’s Office began an investigation in June 2015 in conjunction with members of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Task Force, Massachusetts State Police Gang Unit, and the Lynn Police Department.

Authorities executed a search warrant on Oct. 26, 2015, at a Lynn residence thought to be the “stash house” and seized 67 oxycodone pills, more than $30,000 in cash and two guns.

The four defendants were indicted by an Essex County Grand Jury in December 2015 on the charges. The cases against Bello, Deleon and Rios are still ongoing.

The AG’s Office has been working closely with its federal, state and local partners to combat illegal drug trafficking. AG Healey formed an internal task force to more aggressively combat the heroin and prescription drug abuse crisis in Massachusetts. The AG’s Office is using a multi-faceted approach that includes education for prescribers, pursuing illegal drug traffickers and pill mills, and expanding access to recovery and treatment programs.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General Megan McLaughlin, of AG Healey’s Enterprise and Major Crimes Division. It was investigated by State Police assigned to the AG’s Office, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Massachusetts State Police Gang Unit, the AG’s Digital Evidence Lab and the Lynn Police Department.

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