Four Men and Three Women Charged with Sending Cocaine to the Continental United States Through the Mail

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On October 12, 2022, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment charging seven individuals with conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Puerto Rico Police Bureau (PRPB) Aguadilla Strike Force led the investigation with assistance from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), and the PRPB Strike Force units from Mayagüez and Arecibo.

“Drug trafficking destroys families and communities,” said USA Muldrow. “This organization fed a pipeline of drugs ultimately sold on American streets, fostering violence and drug addiction across the nation. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and its partners will continue to pursue drug traffickers who operate in all areas of Puerto Rico and to seek justice for our communities.”

“Criminal organizations are constantly looking for ways to transport narcotics to the continental United States, using Puerto Rico as a transshipment point because of its strategic location in the Caribbean,” said Joseph González, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Juan Field Office. “This case is an example of the FBI’s commitment to combat drug trafficking organizations, using an intelligence-driven approach to disrupt their criminal operations at all levels. I’d like to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the U.S. Postal Service, Puerto Rico Police Bureau, and the Aguadilla Strike Force for their continued work in support of our joint mission.”

The indictment alleges that from 2018 until May of 2022 the defendants conspired to mail kilogram quantities of cocaine from Puerto Rico to the continental United States for further distribution, all for significant financial gain and profit. The defendants charged are:

Freddie Talavera-Acevedo, a.k.a. “Boss/Kenton/F/Fred/Freddie Blue/Pucho Vázquez”

Katherine Pérez-Martínez

Edwin Gómez-Vale, a.k.a. “Papilla Jr.”

Edwin Alberto Gómez-Medina, a.k.a. “Papilla/Paquio”

Tamara Enid Acevedo-Torres, a.k.a. “Mara”

Tasha Marie Cordero-Dilan, a.k.a. “Negra”

Jayson Zabdiel Cardona-Morales, a.k.a. “Barbero/Barber/Barbel/Negro”

In furtherance of their conspiracy, the defendants acquired kilograms of cocaine from co‑conspirators in Puerto Rico and concealed them in U.S. Postal Service (“USPS”) parcels that they forwarded to the continental United States. For example, they purchased commercial products, including air mattresses, towels, and children’s toys, and concealed kilograms of cocaine in those newly bought items before mailing the items in larger boxes by way of the USPS. Other co‑conspirators received the cocaine-laden shipments in the continental United States and proceeded with their further distribution.

At times, the defendants tracked the packages using the USPS tracking number and sent each other photos of the tracking numbers. They also used fake names and/or fake addresses on the boxes and tried to mask the smell of drugs using Vaseline, tape, air mattresses, and other items.

Upon conviction of the conspiracy, all the defendants are facing a forfeiture allegation of the following:

1. $30,000.00 in U.S. currency seized from a postal parcel on or about October 8, 2020.
2. $16,500.00 in U.S. currency seized from a postal parcel on or about October 8, 2020.
3. $52,800.00 in U.S. currency seized from a postal parcel on or about January 26, 2021.
4. $40,000.00 in U.S. currency seized from a postal parcel on or about September 29, 2021.
5. An additional $40,000.00 in U.S. currency seized from a postal parcel seized on or about September 29, 2021.
6. $23,400,000.00 in U.S. currency- The sum of money equal to the total amount of money involved in each offense.

Assistant U.S. Attorney and Chief of the Gang Section Alberto López-Rocafort, Deputy Chief of the Gang Section, AUSA Tereza Zapata-Valladares, and AUSA Joseph Russell are in charge of the prosecution of the case. If convicted on the drug charges, the defendants face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years, and up to life in prison.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.

An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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