RHODE ISLAND STATE POLICE HIGH INTENSITY DRUG TRAFFICKING AREA (HIDTA) TASK FORCE ARRESTS A WEST WARWICK MAN ON FIREARM AND DRUG DISTRIBUTION CHARGES
Rhode Island – Colonel Steven G. O’Donnell, Superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police and Commissioner of Public Safety, announces that on Wednesday, February 24, 2016, members of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force arrested Korey Santangelo, age: 24, of 71 Harbour Avenue, West Warwick, Rhode Island on multiple Firearm and Narcotic Distribution charges.
On February 24, 2016 at 8:45 a.m., members of the HIDTA Task Force, with the assistance of the Rhode Island National Guard 13th Civil Support Team, executed a court-authorized search warrant at 71 Harbour Avenue, West Warwick, Rhode Island. As a result, members of the HIDTA Task Force seized the following items:
• 10 pounds of Marijuana
• 9 grams of Butane Honey Oil (BHO)
• 111 Lorazepam pills
• Two (2) Codeine pills
• Two (2) Oxycodone pills
• Nine (9) Alprazolam pills
• Two (2) Diazepam Schedule IV
• Ruger Model 10/22, Semi-Automatic Rifle.
• Phoenix Arms, Model HP22A- 22. caliber, Semi-automatic Pistol
• Smith & Wesson- .40 caliber, Model MP40, Semi-Automatic Pistol.
• Kahr Arms-.45 Caliber, Model CW45, Semi-Automatic Pistol.
• Bushmaster-.223 Caliber, Semi-Automatic Rifle, Model XMIS-E2S,
• $3, 481.00 Dollars in United States Currency
• Packaging materials
• Various magazine clips for weapons seized and multiple boxes/amounts of ammunition.
Korey Santangelo, age: 24, of 71 Harbour Avenue, West Warwick, Rhode Island, was arrested and charged with:
o Manufacture/Possession with Intent to Deliver- Marijuana;
o Four (4) Counts of Possession of a Controlled Substance-Schedule I, II, III;
o Five (5) Counts of Possession of a Firearm while Committing a Controlled Substance Violation; and
o Manufacture/Possession/Delivery of Schedule I- (Marijuana) 1-5 Kilos
Mr. Santangelo was processed at State Police Headquarters and arraigned in Third Division District Court. The Honorable Associate Judge Pamela Woodcock-Pfeifer held Mr. Santangelo without bail on the above charges at the Adult Correctional Institute until a March 8, 2016 bail hearing.
Every person convicted of violating the provisions of Possession with Intent to Deliver, Schedule I or I Controlled Substance, upon conviction may be imprisoned to a term up to life or fined not more than five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) nor less than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or both.
Every person convicted of violating the provisions of Possession of between 1-5 Kilograms of Schedule I-Marijuana, upon conviction may be imprisoned to a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of 50 years’ imprisonment and a maximum fine of $500,000.
Every person convicted of violating provisions of Possession of a Firearm While Committing a Controlled Substance Violation, upon conviction, shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than two (2) years nor more than twenty (20) years, and the sentence shall be consecutive to any sentence the person may receive for the delivery, possession with intent to deliver, or the manufacture of the controlled substance. It shall not be a defense to a violation of this subsection that a person has a license or permit to carry or possess a firearm.
The HIDTA Task Force is managed by the Rhode Island State Police and comprised of members from Providence Police, Pawtucket Police, Johnston Police, Central Falls Police, West Warwick Police, United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF), United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the United States Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).