PROVIDENCE – Four members of a large-scale drug trafficking conspiracy involving the kidnapping of a U.S. Postal Service (USPS) letter carrier at gunpoint, and kilogram quantities of cocaine shipped from Puerto Rico to Rhode Island, have been sentenced in federal court to lengthy federal prison terms.
District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell, Jr. sentenced Edgar Medina, 41, of Johnston, to 30 years’ imprisonment; Ronald Hall, 43, of Providence, to 20 years’ imprisonment; Andres Garay, 39, of Providence, to 10 years’ imprisonment; and Alijah Parsons, 34, of Providence, to 60 months’ imprisonment.
After a 13-day trial, a jury convicted Edgar Medina on February 13, 2026, of kidnapping, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, and aiding and abetting possession and attempted possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine. Medina was previously convicted of drug trafficking and firearms charges, in 2004.
The jury also returned guilty verdicts against Parsons for the conspiracy, possession, and attempted possession with intent to distribute charges, and against Garay for attempted possession with intent to distribute. Garay was previously convicted of federal drug trafficking charges, in 2010 and 2014.
Prior to trial, Hall pleaded guilty to kidnapping and conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. He was previously convicted of offenses involving firearms and/or controlled substances in 2000, 2005, 2012, 2013, and 2014, as well as conspiracy to commit murder in 2000.
Irving Medina, 33, of Providence, the fifth member of the conspiracy, pleaded guilty on March 14, 2024, to a charge of conspiracy to possess 500 grams or more of cocaine with the intent to distribute. He was sentenced in March 2024 to 70 months of incarceration, to be followed by four years of federal supervised release.
According to court documents and witness testimony, on June 1, 2021, Edgar Medina and Ronald Hall kidnapped a USPS letter carrier at gunpoint while searching for cocaine they believed was missing from a package delivered in Pawtucket. They drove the letter carrier to his own home, intending to search the residence, and interrogated the USPS employee at gunpoint. Upon finding the home locked and a neighbor outside, Medina and Hall and ultimately returned the USPS employee near the original abduction point. Photographs subsequently found in co-conspirators’ cellphones revealed additional photographs of USPS employees, taken both before and after the kidnapping.
During the investigation, Postal Inspectors learned of several packages that had been previously shipped from fictitious people and addresses in Puerto Rico to addresses in Rhode Island associated with Edgar Medina. Agents also intercepted additional packages that a Rhode Island State Police K-9 alerted for the presence of narcotics. Court-authorized searches of the packages resulted in the discovery of a total of more than three kilograms of cocaine. Postal Inspectors arranged for controlled deliveries of those packages on June 8, 2021, under surveillance by U.S. Postal Service Inspectors, members of the Rhode Island State Police High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, and the Rhode Island State Police Violent Fugitive Task Force. As the packages were delivered, Edgar Medina, Andres Garay, and Ronald Hall were arrested.
“The individuals participated in a significant drug trafficking conspiracy that relied on violence and intimidation,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Charles C. Calenda. “These sentences hold the defendants accountable for conduct that endangered both the public and a federal employee carrying out his duties. I thank the prosecutors in this office, the Postal Inspectors, and our partners in law enforcement for their diligent work throughout this investigation.”
“The sentencing of these defendants sends a strong and unmistakable message: anyone who threatens, targets, or harms letter carriers will be relentlessly pursued and held fully accountable,” said J. Buck Buckley, Acting Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Boston Division. “Violence, kidnapping, and drug trafficking offenses that endanger postal employees and the communities they serve will be met with an aggressive law enforcement response and unwavering prosecution. The safety of our employees and the protection of our communities remains a top priority for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Postal inspectors will continue to work alongside our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners to identify, investigate, and bring to justice those who commit violent crimes or seek to intimidate public servants carrying out their duties.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christine Lowell and Sandra Hebert.
The matter was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Providence Domicile, with assistance of USPIS task force officers from the Rhode Island State Police, Groton, Connecticut Police Department, and the Massachusetts State Police; with significant assistance from the Pawtucket and Providence Police Departments; the U.S. Marshal Service; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
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