Dominican drug kingpin gets almost 8 years for trafficking in Manchester area

CONCORD - A man from the Dominican Republic, most recently residing in Manchester, was sentenced on Friday to 91 months in federal prison for conspiring to sell fentanyl and other substances around the Manchester area, the U.S. Attorneys Office has announced.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Wilgfrido Valnodis Arias-Mejia, 46, also known as "Chino," was a prolific drug distributor who sold fentanyl and crack cocaine from at least 2018 to November 27, 2019, in the Manchester area. He ran a drug ring during that time period, selling large quantities of fentanyl and other controlled substances, and employing various co-conspirators to sell drugs on his behalf. The defendant provided his employees with prepackaged bags containing multiple "fingers" (10-gram packages) of fentanyl and smaller baggies containing fentanyl, powder cocaine, and crack cocaine, and he would resupply his co-conspirators as soon as each package was sold.

Arias-Mejia previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, including more than 40 grams of fentanyl, on March 3, 2021. He is the last of five defendants in the conspiracy to be sentenced.

"This defendant was a major drug trafficker in the Manchester area who endangered the community by selling drugs directly to New Hampshire residents, and through others he recruited to do his bidding for him," said U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young. "He is the last in this conspiracy to be sentenced, and he is the most culpable. We will continue to work together with our law enforcement partners to keep drugs off the streets of our communities and hold drug traffickers like Arias-Mejia accountable for their crimes."

"DEA is committed to investigating and dismantling Drug Trafficking Organizations and individuals like Mr. Arias-Mejia who are responsible for distributing lethal drugs like fentanyl to the citizens of New Hampshire," said DEA Special Agent in Charge Brian D. Boyle. "Let this sentence be a warning to those traffickers who distribute this poison in order to profit and destroy people's lives. DEA's top priority is combatting the opioid epidemic by working with our local, county, state and federal partners to bring to justice anyone who distributes deadly drugs."

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Drug Enforcement Administration with assistance from the Manchester Police Department and Nashua Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Georgiana MacDonald and Aaron Gingrande.