Manchester Man Pleads Guilty To Possessing 70 Kilograms Of Cocaine

Thursday, December 19, 2024, 10:00 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,

BOSTON, MA.- Last week, a 38-year-old Manchester, New Hampshire, man learned that he could be potentially spending the rest of his life in federal prison after admitting guilt to a federal narcotics violation after getting caught earlier this year in Salem, Massachusetts, with 70 kilograms of cocaine hidden in the trunk of his vehicle.

     On Thursday, December 11, 2024, Miguel Angel Martinez Lugo, also known as “Jesus Manuel Encarnacion” and “Jose Rosado Rabell,” 38, of Manchester, New Hampshire, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts and pleaded guilty before U.S. District Court Judge Julia E. Kobick to one count of Possession with Intent to Distribute Five Kilograms of More of Cocaine.

Martinez Lugo Faces Up To Life In Federal Prison

     Following entering his guilty plea on Thursday, Judge Kobick accepted the plea and scheduled sentencing for March 6, 2025, at which time Martinez Lugo faces a mandatory minimum of ten years and up to life in federal prison, up to life of supervised release, and a $10 million fine.

     According to U.S. Attorney Nikolas P. Kerest and charging information filed with the court, on April 4, 2024, members of the Salem Police Department were working a plain clothes detail in an unmarked police vehicle, observed a black Acura MDX with a New Hampshire license plate registered to Martinez Lugo under his alias Jesus Encarnacion, and a Chevrolet Pickup Truck with an Ohio license plate driving close to the Acura, that Police Officers believed were traveling together.

Police Officer Observe Bins Being Loaded Into The Acura

    The police officers followed both vehicles as they drove down several streets before parking on Porter Street Court in Salem, Massachusetts. The vehicles were parked in a way that allowed police officers to clearly view the rear of both vehicles. While observing the vehicles, police officers saw two individuals, one identified as Martinez Lugo, remove a large plastic storage bin from the back of the pickup truck and put it into the back of the Acura MDX. Officers also observed two additional black storage bins inside the Acura.

    When the Acura MDX passed the police officers’ vehicle, the driver, Martinez Lugo, made eye contact with the officers and quickly parked before fleeing from the vehicle but was subsequently apprehended. The police officers quickly obtained a court-authorized search warrant for the vehicle and found 70 kilograms of cocaine, three cell phones, and other illegal items recovered from inside the Acura MDX.