Newington Man Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Role in Hartford Drug Ring

David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that, KEVIN MENDEZ 32, of Cypress Road, Newington, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport 60 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his participation in a Hartford-area narcotics trafficking ring. On April 21, 2010, MENDEZ pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine.

This matter stems from “Operation Solid Gold,” a joint law enforcement investigation headed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force. The year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, controlled purchases of cocaine and heroin, and physical surveillance. As a result of the investigation, 55 individuals were charged with various offenses related to the distribution of cocaine and heroin in and around Hartford.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in January and February 2009, MENDEZ was intercepted multiple times over a wiretap engaging in drug-related conversations with another member of the conspiracy. The intercepted calls and physical surveillance revealed that MENDEZ regularly purchased distribution quantities of cocaine and heroin for sale to his own customers.

MENDEZ was on federal supervised release at the time these drug transactions occurred. On August 4, 2003, MENDEZ was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut to 37 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, based on his conviction for conspiring to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force, the Statewide Cooperative Crime Control Task Force of the Connecticut State Police, and the Hartford Police Department, with assistance from the Statewide Organized Crime Investigative Task Force of the Connecticut State Police, Connecticut State Police, Troop H, and the Connecticut Department of Correction. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Brian P. Leaming and Geoffrey M. Stone.