BOSTON – An alleged member of the Lawrence Chapter of the Trinitarios has been arrested and charged in connection with a years-long conspiracy to distribute controlled substances.
Jhesy Rodriguez, a/k/a “J Sav,” 31, of Lawrence, is charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance. The defendant was arrested today and will appear in federal court in Boston later today.
According to charging documents, Rodriguez was encountered during the execution of a search warrant in Lawrence, Mass., in September 2025. That search resulted in the seizure of three firearms, approximately 10 grams of counterfeit Percocet pills containing fentanyl and multiple cellular phones. The search of cellular phones revealed that Rodriguez had allegedly been distributing drugs for multiple years, all while subject to pretrial release conditions and a GPS bracelet ordered by the state court in a pending firearm case.
Text messages recovered from Rodriguez’s phone allegedly revealed that he arranged for drug transactions to take place at his child’s birthday party that was being held at a Chuck E. Cheese, and after a drug test. The charging documents also describe multiple cooperating witnesses in the Trinitarios investigation who identified Rodriguez’s alleged participation in two Trinitarios shootings, one in Lynn and one in Lawrence, as part of the Trinitarios.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute, a controlled substance, provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, at least three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Jeff Grimming, Acting Special Agent in Charge of Homeland Security Investigations in New England; Ted E. Docks, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division; Essex County District Attorney Paul F. Tucker; Massachusetts State Police Colonel Geoffrey D. Noble; and Lawrence Police Chief Maurice Aguiler made the announcement. Valuable assistance was provided by US Marshal Service for the District of Massachusetts, Lowell Police and Middlesex Sheriff’s Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Philip A. Mallard of the Organized Crime & Gang Unit is prosecuting the case.
This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Boston is comprised of agents and officers from HSI, FBI, DEA, ATF, USMS, IRS-CI, USPIS, DOL-OIG and DSS, as well as several state and local law enforcement agencies, with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces and Project Safe Neighborhood.
The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.