United States Drug Enforcement Administration

HARTFORD, Conn. - Marc H. Silverman, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that LUIS DeJESUS, 30, of Hartford, has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 132 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for narcotics distribution and firearm possession offenses.

According to court documents and statements made in court, DeJesus’s criminal history includes felony convictions in state court for criminal possession of a firearm and burglary in the third degree.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in 2022, members of the Connecticut State Police’s Statewide Narcotics Task Force – North Central Office conducted a series of controlled purchases of narcotics from DeJesus.  DeJesus was arrested on state charges on December 16, 2022, and, on that date, a court-authorized search of his Hartford residence revealed approximately 460 grams of fentanyl, approximately 90 grams of crack cocaine, nearly a kilogram of marijuana, drug processing and packaging materials, a loaded Glock 45 9mm handgun, a loaded 9mm magazine, and $52,579 in cash.

The case was adopted for federal prosecution, and, on March 7, 2023, a grand jury returned an indictment charging DeJesus with one count of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl and a quantity of cocaine, and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

After his federal arrest, DeJesus was released on a $100,000 bond and into home confinement at residence of a family member on Warren Street in Hartford.  On November 20, 2023, DeJesus was again arrested after law enforcement executed a search warrant at the residence.  As investigators entered the residence, DeJesus threw fentanyl out of a window.  A search of the residence revealed an additional quantity of fentanyl, a small quantity of cocaine, and drug processing and packaging materials.  In total, DeJesus possessed more than 490 grams of fentanyl on that date.

On February 20, 2024, the grand jury returned a superseding indictment charging DeJesus with an additional count of possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.

DeJesus has been detained since November 20, 2023.  On October 17, 2024, he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

This matter was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Hartford Resident Office and the Connecticut State Police’s Statewide Narcotics Task Force – North Central Office, with the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney A. Reed Durham.