A Shirley man pled guilty yesterday in federal court in Boston to conspiracy to traffic substantial amounts of methamphetamine and fentanyl.
According to the Massachusetts Department of Justice, 49-year-old Noel Haro pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and 40 grams or more of fentanyl, two counts of distribution and possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, aiding and abetting, and one count of distribution and possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. Judge William G. Young of the United States Senior District Court has scheduled a sentencing date on June 5, 2025. Noel Haro and his brother, Marcos Haro, were indicted in April 2023.
Noel Haro is a member and influential leader of the “Border Brothers” gang, a large-scale international gang noted for its involvement in drug, weapon, and people trafficking in Southern Arizona, with a presence in Nogales, Mexico, and the Arizona prison system. Noel Haro is now serving a life term in a Massachusetts Department of Correction facility following convictions in Arizona for narcotics distribution, conspiracy, and money laundering.
Noel Haro was originally serving his sentence in Arizona but was relocated to Massachusetts after being designated a security risk owing to his claimed influence over other convicts and frequent entrance of cell phones and drugs into Arizona prisons.
An investigation into Noel Haro’s attempts to support drug trafficking to Massachusetts through inmate phone conversations began in or around April 2019. Specifically, during his jail calls, Noel Haro asked friends and family members to carry narcotics from Arizona to Massachusetts on his behalf. In April 2022, recorded inmate communications revealed that Noel Haro collaborated with his brother, Marcos Haro, to allegedly plan narcotics transactions outside of prison.
In June 2022, Marcos Haro allegedly agreed to provide an individual with several drug samples, including fentanyl and methamphetamines. Marcos Haro allegedly mailed the narcotics, disguised as a purple teddy bear, to the individual. It is claimed that on July 13, 2022, the package was collected and discovered to contain fentanyl, five fentanyl pills, methamphetamine, and roughly 3 grams of black tar heroin. On July 25, 2022, during a recorded inmate call, Noel Haro and Marcos Haro reportedly agreed to sell one pound of methamphetamine to the same person for $5,000. It is claimed that on July 27, 2022, a parcel delivered by Marcos Haro was seized and discovered to contain roughly 446.6 grams of 99% pure methamphetamine.
During a recorded inmate call on August 10, 2022, Noel Haro reportedly instructed Marcos Haro to arrange for the sale of five pounds of methamphetamine to the individual. Later, on September 12, 2022, two parcels purportedly shipped by Marcos Haro were discovered to contain around 892.3 grams of 86% pure methamphetamine and 1,320.2 kilos of 95% pure methamphetamine.
Marcos Haro is set to plead guilty on March 19, 2025.
The charge of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and 40 grams or more of fentanyl carries a sentence of at least 10 years to life in prison, at least five years to life on supervised release, and a fine of up to $10 million. The accusations of distribution and possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine and aiding and abetting each carry a term of at least 10 years to life in prison, at least five years to life on supervised release, and a fine of up to $10 million. The offense of distributing and possessing with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl; aiding and abetting carries a term of at least five years and up to 40 years in prison, at least four years and up to a lifetime of supervised release, and a fine of up to $5,000,000. A federal district court judge imposes sentences based on the United States Sentencing Guidelines and the legislation that governs sentence determination in criminal cases.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley, Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Boston Division, and Shawn Jenkins, Commissioner of the Department of Corrections, made the news today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Alathea E. Porter and Charles Dell’Anno from the Narcotics and Money Laundering Unit.
This case is part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force’s activity. OCDETF employs a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most powerful criminal organizations that pose a threat to the United States.