Cape Cod Man Sentenced In Heroin Ring With Pawtucket Ties

BOSTON, MA — A member of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe has been sentenced to prison for his role in a heroin trafficking conspiracy with ties to Cape Cod and Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

Joshua Johnson, 34, was sentenced Wednesday in Boston's federal courthouse to time served plus an additional two weeks — for a total of around 13 months in prison — and three years of supervised release.

Prosecutors say that Johnson was a drug trafficker supplied by Edwin Otero. According to a 46-page criminal complaint, Otero was a "violent Cape Cod-area drug trafficker" who was well-known to police. Otero maintained homes in Barnstable and at 49 Grotto Ave. in Pawtucket, an alleged "stash house."

Agents with a cell phone warrant first tied Otero to the Pawtucket address on April 24, 2019 after he ordered a pizza delivery to the house, the criminal complaint states.

49 Grotto Ave. in Pawtucket (Google Maps)

Johnson is the second of a dozen co-defendants to be sentenced in the case, and the fourth to plead guilty. Last month Eric Brando Jr. of Osterville was sentenced to 66 months in prison.

In May of 2019, following a wiretap investigation, federal agents arrested the suspects and charged them with various drug offenses.

Otero has pleaded not guilty and is in custody while awaiting trial.