Alejandro Lopez made a full confession to police when arrested in 2009.
SPRINGFIELD – Alejandro R. Lopez admitted in Hampden Superior Court he sold guns and drugs here and that his enterprise ended because he was selling them to an undercover state trooper.
Lopez, 40, of Springfield, pleaded guilty to 18 crimes Friday and was sentenced to a seven to nine year state prison sentence by Judge Peter A. Velis.
Lopez admitted to eight counts of cocaine distribution (as a subsequent offender); three counts of carrying a firearm without a license; three counts of possessing ammunition illegally; two counts of trafficking cocaine; and one count each of trafficking firearms and possession of cocaine with intent to distribute.
In a 2009 operation run by state police attached to the Hampden District Attorney’s Office in conjunction with the Hampden County Narcotics Task Force, undercover troopers purchased drugs and guns from Lopez over a four month period.
Assistant District Attorney James R. Goodhines said Troopers Jeffrey Cahill and Peter Konstantakos, along with other officers, did an outstanding job “to identify and remove a significant drug and gun dealer from city of Springfield.”
Goodhines said Lopez gave a full confession to troopers.
State law says a person who sells three or more guns in a 12-month period can be charged with trafficking firearms, Goodhines said.
Of the guns sold, two were .25-caliber handguns and one was a 380-caliber handgun, Goodhines said.