Eric Nunez has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances as well as the use of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking activity. Nunez' guilty plea marks the last of 13 defendants to plead guilty in connection with a 22-count superseding indictment with charges involving drug distribution, use of firearms, pharmacy burglaries and ATM thefts.
The defendants are members and associates of a burglary and drug trafficking organization known as the “Route Boys.” The Route Boys have committed burglaries of pharmacies and convenience stores in Nassau, Suffolk, Brooklyn, Queens, Westchester and Rockland Counties, as well as in New Jersey and Connecticut. These crimes took place from 2020 through June 2022, when they were arrested.
“With today’s guilty plea, and a dozen others previously, the criminal organization known as the “Route Boys” has been routed for their crime spree targeting local businesses throughout the Tri-State area, distributing drugs stolen from pharmacies and using firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking,” Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in a press release.
Tthe superseding indictment alleged the Route Boys began committing burglaries in late 2020, breaking into convenience stores, check-cashing businesses, laundromats and restaurants, stealing primarily cash and tobacco products. In addition, the organization often stole free-standing ATMs, forcing them open and stealing the cash from inside the machine, netting them tens of thousands of dollars.
They then began targeting small 'mom-and-pop' pharmacies throughout the Tri-State area by smashing through windows and stealing controlled substances such as oxycodone and promethazine-codeine cough syrup. They sold these stolen pharmaceuticals, often by advertising on social media immediately after a night of burglaries.
When sentenced, Carlos Acevedo, Ramon Collado, Naresh Deonarrain, the crew’s founder Jason Liriano, Charlie Maisonet, Cavier Nedrick, Eric Nunez, Jose Rosado, Alberto Santiago, and Jeffrey Vargas each face up to life imprisonment. Jonathan Santiago faces a sentence of up to 20 years’ imprisonment, Luis Cerda faces a sentence of up to 10 years’ imprisonment, and Devin Lopez-Dominguez faces a sentence of up to 5 years’ imprisonment.
