Repeat felon convicted on drug charge by a federal jury going back to prison

ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Julio Perez, 65, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, was sentenced to serve 144 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew T. McGrath and Brandon N. Gonzalez, who handled the trial of the case, stated that in June 2024, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Perez's residence, seizing approximately an ounce of fentanyl and nearly $10,000 in cash. The warrant was part of a large-scale narcotics trafficking investigation led by Homeland Security Investigations and the Ontario County Sheriff's Office. Warrants were also executed at multiple locations in both Monroe and Ontario Counties. At the time the search warrant was executed, Perez was on supervised release following federal narcotics trafficking convictions in 2018 and 2002.

Perez was convicted of this latest charge by a federal jury in November 2025. With a third narcotics trafficking conviction, the Court determined that Perez is a career offender, resulting in an enhanced sentence.

The sentence is the result of an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan, the Ontario County Sheriff's Office, under the direction of Sheriff David Cirencione, the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Kevin Sucher, and the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief David Smith.

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