Pittsburgh Review

Two residents of New Castle, Pennsylvania, were sentenced in federal court for their involvement in a cocaine trafficking operation spanning from Puerto Rico to Western Pennsylvania. The announcement was made by United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan on December 18, 2024.

The defendants, Luciano Bratini Rivera and Markus Hobel, were among 17 individuals indicted in March 2024 for violating federal narcotics, firearms, and racketeering laws. Senior United States District Judge Arthur J. Schwab sentenced Rivera to 97 months of imprisonment followed by four years of supervised release. Hobel received a sentence of 72 months in prison with five years of supervised release.

Rivera conspired with Daniel Feliciano, the leader of the drug trafficking organization, to distribute cocaine sourced from Puerto Rico throughout Lawrence County and beyond. He stored drug proceeds and transported funds to Philadelphia to exchange for more cocaine. At least five kilograms of cocaine were attributed to Rivera.

Hobel acted as Feliciano's bodyguard and was involved in distributing at least 100 grams of cocaine. He unlawfully carried firearms during the conspiracy to protect Feliciano's operations.

Assistant United States Attorney Carl J. Spindler prosecuted the case. The investigation involved multiple agencies including the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Lawrence County HIDTA Drug Task Force.

Lawrence County is designated as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), receiving federal resources for combating drug trafficking since July 2022.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation aimed at dismantling high-level criminal networks threatening the United States.