A Meriden man was sentenced to over four years in prison for his role in trafficking cocaine between Puerto Rico and Connecticut using the U.S. Mail.

In July 2022, Jean Carlos Mercado, 34, of Meriden, pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. He was originally arrested in the summer of 2021. He was sentenced in federal court in Hartford to a total of 50 months, followed by three years of supervised release. 

According to the US Attorney’s Office for Connecticut, police first observed several suspicious packages being mailed from Puerto Rico to an unnamed address in Meriden in October 2020. Officers reportedly witnessed Mercado pick up one of these packages once in October and again on Nov. 6, 2020. 

Police conducted a traffic stop, intercepted Mercado and discovered the package contained two kilograms of cocaine, the US Attorney’s Office said.

Over the next several months, Mercado reportedly worked with other individuals to coordinate picking up similar suspicious packages, from which officers seized four additional kilograms of cocaine.

Mercado could not be reached for comment.