A Dominican national residing in Chelsea, Massachusetts, has been sentenced to three years in prison for charges related to fentanyl trafficking. Junior Baez Sanchez, 32, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Patti B. Saris. Upon completing his sentence, Baez Sanchez faces deportation.
In January 2025, Baez Sanchez admitted guilt to two counts of fentanyl distribution and one count related to court nonappearance. The charges stemmed from incidents involving over 40 grams of fentanyl distributed in Chelsea on June 2, 2020, and in Malden on July 15, 2020.
Baez Sanchez was indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2021 and scheduled for trial in October 2022. However, he failed to appear in court on October 4, 2022, prompting an arrest warrant. Nearly two years later, on September 24, 2024, law enforcement arrested him following a traffic stop. At the time, Baez Sanchez was found carrying 12 clear bags of fentanyl.
The announcement of the sentence was made by United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and James M. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Boston Field Division. The case received special assistance from the Chelsea Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Dell’Anno of the Criminal Division.