District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez on Tuesday sentenced Angel Negron-Beltran to 38 months in prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
According to U.S. Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe, Negron-Beltran, 53, was arrested as part of the investigation of Roberto Tapia, former director of the Department of Planning and Natural Resources Division of Environmental Enforcement.
Negron-Beltran was charged on Nov. 7, 2013, in a 69-count indictment, along with seven other defendants, including former V.I. Police Department Sgt. Angelo Hill, Raymond Brown, Hector Alcenio, Stephen Torres, Eddie Lopez-Lopez, Walter Hill and Edwin Monsanto. On Jan. 29 Negron-Beltran pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.
In addition to incarceration for 38 months, Negron-Beltran was placed on four-years supervised release and ordered to pay a $100 special assessment, Sharpe said.
The case was investigated by the Public Corruption Task Force, which is made up of the FBI, U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the VIPD, the U.S. Marshals Service, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Office of the Virgin Islands Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kelly B. Lake and Kim Lindquist prosecuted the case.
