Two individuals from Reading, Pennsylvania, Dewayne Quinones and Mayco Alvarez-Jackson, have been sentenced to life imprisonment. The sentences were handed down by United States District Court Judge Juan R. Sánchez for their involvement in murder, kidnapping, drug distribution, and firearms offenses as part of a violent drug trafficking organization (DTO) in the Reading area.
The Trinidad DTO was linked to multiple crimes in 2017 and 2018, including a quadruple homicide on January 28, 2018. In October 2022, Quinones and Alvarez-Jackson were convicted alongside the DTO leader Jesus Feliciano-Trinidad for federal murder and weapons charges related to this incident. Feliciano-Trinidad received a life sentence last December.
A comprehensive investigation led to charges against more than 15 defendants connected to the Trinidad DTO's operations involving methamphetamine, heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, and crack cocaine. The indictments revealed the use of various properties and acts of violence by the defendants to further their drug activities around Reading.
U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero stated that "the Trinidad organization thoroughly terrorized the Reading area for years," emphasizing the collaborative efforts of law enforcement agencies in combating such organizations.
Berks County District Attorney John Adams highlighted that these life sentences serve as a deterrent against violence and drug trafficking: "These sentences should send a message that we will not tolerate violence or drug trafficking."
The case was investigated by FBI Philadelphia’s Allentown Resident Agency along with local law enforcement partners and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kelly A. Lewis Fallenstein, Rosalynda M. Michetti, and Vineet Gauri.