SHARE

Feds Aim To Trace Heroin, Target Dealers Across Connecticut

FAIRFIELD COUNTY, Conn. — To combat the rising tide of drug overdose deaths in Connecticut, a statewide initiative is targeting drug dealers who distribute heroin, fentanyl or opioids that cause the deaths of or seriously injure drug users, federal law enforcement authorities announced Wednesday.

Deirdre Daly, U.S. attorney for Connecticut, is joined by members of police departments from across the state to discuss efforts to target heroin dealers after a rise in overdose deaths.

Deirdre Daly, U.S. attorney for Connecticut, is joined by members of police departments from across the state to discuss efforts to target heroin dealers after a rise in overdose deaths.

Photo Credit: Office of the U.S. Attorney for Connecticut

Since January, a team of local, state and federal officials have investigated 20 heroin and opioid overdoses in Connecticut, most of which have been fatal, and made a number of arrests. 

Currently, there are investigations underway of overdoses in Danbury, Derby, Enfield, Greenwich, Middletown, Newtown, New Haven, Norwalk, Norwich, Shelton, Stamford, Vernon, Weston, Willimantic and Woodbridge, said U.S. Attorney Deirdre M. Daly, Deputy Chief State’s Attorney Leonard C. Boyle and Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Ferguson of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

As part of this initiative, police are following a protocol in heroin and opioid overdose deaths. The DEA and local police will jointly investigate to determine the events leading up to the death, the source of the drug involved, and the composition of the drug, Daly said. Individuals responsible for distributing drugs causing overdose deaths will be prosecuted.

“We are combatting a tragic opioid epidemic that is plaguing Connecticut and much of the country,” said Daly. “Deaths caused by heroin or prescription opioids have devastated hundreds of families from every corner of our state. This statewide initiative will enable law enforcement to quickly determine if a highly toxic drug is on the street and take steps to identify the source of the drug in order to keep it out of the hands of vulnerable users. 

"The police protocol will allow investigators to preserve evidence critical to identifying and convicting those responsible for distributing these drugs. Our aim is to prevent additional deaths and to hold accountable those who distribute these deadly drugs.”

To date, this initiative has resulted in federal charges against:

  • Reginald Miles, Jr., 25, of Waterbury, Wade Pettingill, 23, of Middlebury, and Kevin Foster, 23, of Middlebury, in connection with the heroin overdose death of a 22-year-old man in Woodbridge on Nov. 19;
  • Tahir Farid, 21, and Ryan Looney, 19, both of Hamden, in connection with the oxycodone overdose of a 22-year-old man in Weston on Jan. 5;
  • Bradley Commerford, 20, of Derby, in connection with the heroin overdose death of a 23-year-old man in Derby on Feb. 17, and two non-fatal heroin overdoses of an 18-year-old man and a 22-year-old man in Shelton on Feb. 16; and
  • Ryan Budd, 25, of Bethel, in connection with a non-fatal heroin overdose of a 25-year-old woman in Danbury on March 1.

As part of this statewide initiative, the DEA and U.S. attorney’s office received funding from the Department of Justice Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force to focus investigations on large-scale sources of heroin being distributed in Connecticut. The DEA also received funding under the National Heroin Strategic Initiative to pay overtime, purchase equipment, fund training, and assist in the investigation of seized cellular telephones.

Also, on Nov. 4, Dr. John Katsetos, who practiced medicine for more than 20 years in Stamford and Milford, was sentenced to seven years in prison for authorizing more than 2 million dosage units of controlled substances to 2,000 patients. His conduct created opioid addictions in dozens of patients, led to the overdose death of a woman, and supplied individuals with a vast quantity of prescription pills that they illegally distributed to others.

The DEA’s New Haven Tactical Diversion Squad includes participants from the New Haven, Hamden, Greenwich, Shelton, Bristol, Vernon and Wilton Police Departments.

to follow Daily Voice Danbury and receive free news updates.

SCROLL TO NEXT ARTICLE