Schenectady Man Pleads Guilty to Drug and Firearm Crimes

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Ramel Gulley, age 28, of Schenectady, New York, pled guilty today to possessing and intending to distribute 400 grams or more of a substance containing fentanyl and to possessing multiple firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.

United States Attorney Carla B. Freedman and Janeen DiGuiseppi, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), made the announcement.

Gulley admitted that on February 28, 2022, he possessed heroin-fentanyl mixtures weighing a total of 2,035 grams that he intended to distribute.  Gulley also admitted that he possessed four firearms in order to protect the drugs, $12,625 in drug proceeds, and his drug trafficking business.

Sentencing is scheduled for October 11, 2023, before Senior United States District Judge Gary L. Sharpe.  Gulley faces a minimum sentence of 15 years and a maximum sentence of life in prison, a fine of up to $10 million, and a post-imprisonment term of supervised release of at least 5 years and up to life.  A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.

This case was investigated by the FBI’s Capital District Safe Streets Gang Task Force, which includes FBI Special Agents and members of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. Assistant U.S. Attorney Dustin C. Segovia is prosecuting the case.