By Tiffany Williams –
A Lexington man has been indicted on federal drug charges after authorities say he arranged to have 20 kilograms of cocaine transported from New York to Massachusetts and was arrested holding a suitcase containing part of the shipment in a Burlington hotel parking lot.
Jianyang Huang, 39, faces one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine and one count of possession with intent to distribute more than five kilograms of cocaine.
Huang was initially charged by criminal complaint in March 2026. His arraignment on the indictment will take place at a later date.
According to court documents, Huang allegedly offered to pay a cooperating witness to collect the cocaine in New York and drive it to Massachusetts for distribution to his customers.
Authorities allege that Huang gave the witness a password to access a group chat with the suppliers on Signal, an encrypted messaging application. He also allegedly instructed the witness to photograph the serial number of a dollar bill.
Huang allegedly sent that photograph to the suppliers and told the witness to retain the bill and present it upon arrival. The bill was intended to identify the person collecting the shipment, according to the alleged arrangement described in court documents.
On March 25, the cooperating witness drove to Flushing, New York, where authorities say the witness met the suppliers, showed the dollar bill and received two suitcases containing 20 kilograms of cocaine.
The witness then met with law enforcement officers, who confirmed that each suitcase contained 10 bricks of cocaine wrapped in plastic, according to court documents.
The alleged delivery continued to Massachusetts. Huang directed the witness to meet him in a hotel room in Burlington, authorities say.
Instead, the two met in the hotel parking lot. According to court documents, each began wheeling one of the suitcases toward Huang’s room.
Authorities arrested Huang in the parking lot with a suitcase in his hand.
Each charge carries a potential sentence of at least 10 years and up to life in prison, at least five years and up to life of supervised release, and a fine of up to $10 million if he is convicted.
A federal district court judge would determine any sentence under the applicable statutes and U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.