Drug kingpin sentenced to 7 to 14 years

NORRISTOWN The man authorities dubbed "the Kingpin of Prussia" for running a cocaine trafficking ring out of a King of Prussia apartment complex was sentenced Monday in Montgomery County Court.

Judge William J. Furber Jr. gave Charbel Pita-Rosales a seven- to 14-year prison term, said Assistant District Attorney Jason Whalley.

The prison term followed sentencing guidelines both sides agreed upon, said defense attorney James E. Lee.

Pita-Rosales was one of the people arrested in 2010 and charged with distributing more than 22 pounds of cocaine a month out of Marquis Apartments on Dekalb Pike.

He was convicted in 2012 of operating corrupt organizations and other charges related to the trafficking ring, which investigators said appeared to have connections to the violent Mexican drug cartel known as La Familia Michoacana.

"This defendant was a major drug dealer, and the lengthy state sentence handed down by the judge was appropriate," Whalley said.

Some of the other defendants are in the midst of legal proceedings, he said.

Pita-Rosales' lawyer said the defense and prosecutors agreed that the sentence "was in the best interest of justice."