Central Falls Fentanyl Street Dealer Sentenced to 72 Months in Prison

Central Falls Fentanyl Street Dealer Sentenced to 72 Months in Prison

A Central Falls fentanyl street dealer was sentenced to 72  months in prison on Monday, announced U.S. Attorney Aaron Weisman.

The sentencing comes after Dennis Rivera, 32, pleaded guilty in April to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and two counts felon in possession of a firearm. 

“Selling fentanyl poisons our neighborhoods and puts drug users lives at risk. Having a gun ‘for protection’ puts everyone in the neighborhood at risk. The defendant’s six-year sentence should sound a warning to others that law enforcement and prosecutors will not tolerate drug dealers poisoning our neighborhoods, particularly armed drug dealers who put everyone’s life in danger,” said Weisman.

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The Arrest

Rivera was arrested on February 3, 2018, as law enforcement executed a court-authorized search of his residence and seized, among other items, a loaded 22 caliber revolver, 11 grams of cocaine, 21 grams of fentanyl, and various items used in the packaging and distribution of drugs.

Rivera told law enforcement that he kept the loaded gun for “protection.”

At the time of his arrest, Rivera was awaiting trial in Rhode Island state court on an unrelated firearm charge.

Rivera was arrested by Central Falls Police in June 2017 following an altercation with another person.

According to the U.S. Attorney's office, as officers approached the two men, Rivera stashed a semi-automatic pistol near the bumper of a nearby car, then quickly walked away.

The firearm was retrieved by police and Rivera was found hiding in the bathroom of a stranger’s apartment nearby.