SPRINGFIELD – A Holyoke man pleaded guilty in federal court in Springfield Thursday to distributing heroin.
Jose Rodriguez, 34, pleaded guilty to distributing and possessing with intent to distribute heroin. The charges were the result of an investigation into heroin trafficking in Holyoke, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston.
Rodriguez sold heroin on Sept. 19 and 27, 2018 in Holyoke. Rodriguez also possessed and intended to distribute 100 or more grams of heroin on July 6, 2019, in Holyoke.
U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni scheduled sentencing for Feb. 5, 2021.
The charge of distributing and possessing with intent to distribute heroin provides for a sentence of up to 40 years in prison, at least four years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $5 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd E. Newhouse of the U.S. Attorney’s Springfield Branch Office is prosecuting the case.