A man from Brooklyn has been sentenced to a decade in prison for his involvement in selling heroin laced with fentanyl to the acclaimed actor and producer, Michael K. Williams. The announcement was made by the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Irvin Cartagena, aged 40, hailing from Aibonito, Puerto Rico, has also been handed an additional five-year term of supervised release due to his role in conspiring to distribute heroin, fentanyl, and fentanyl analogues, as detailed in a news release issued on Friday.
Part of Cartagena’s illicit activities included the distribution of fentanyl-laced heroin, which tragically led to the demise of Michael K. Williams. The statement pointed out that despite their product already causing a fatality, Cartagena and his accomplices continued to peddle the dangerous fentanyl-laced heroin.
In response to the case, US Attorney Damian Williams stated, “Michael K. Williams tragically lost his life after using the drugs sold to him by Cartagena. Although their product had already claimed one life, Cartagena and his co-conspirators continued to sell potentially lethal fentanyl-laced heroin.” Williams further expressed the commitment of his office to aggressively combat drug dealers who distribute lethal substances and contribute to the fentanyl epidemic.
Identified by the moniker “Green Eyes,” Cartagena was one of four individuals implicated in a drug trafficking ring responsible for supplying the fatal fentanyl-laced heroin to Williams.
Having entered a guilty plea in early April, Cartagena admitted to a single count of conspiracy related to the distribution of fentanyl, heroin, and other narcotics, as previously reported by CNN.
Prosecutors alleged that Cartagena was the individual who engaged in the direct exchange of substances with Williams, which occurred just before the actor, most renowned for his portrayal of Omar Little on HBO’s “The Wire,” suffered an accidental overdose.
Even amidst residential apartment complexes in Brooklyn and Manhattan, Cartagena and his co-conspirators continued the brazen sale of fentanyl-laced heroin in broad daylight, according to statements from the US Attorney’s Office.
Following Williams’ untimely passing, Cartagena fled to Puerto Rico, where he was eventually apprehended in February 2022, as stated in the release.
Michael K. Williams was discovered deceased in his New York City apartment in 2021, with the city’s Medical Examiner’s Office attributing his demise to an accidental overdose. He was 54 years old.
The city’s Department of Health reported that fentanyl, an opioid known to be 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, was detected in 80% of drug overdose-related fatalities in New York City in 2021.
CNN’s attempts to locate legal representation for Cartagena for comment have been ongoing.
SOURCE: cnn.com