United States Drug Enforcement Administration

HARTFORD, Conn. - David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and Jarod Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England, announced that CHANEL AYBAR-PENA, 31, a citizen of the Dominican Republic unlawfully present in the U.S., pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford to a fentanyl trafficking offense.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the Drug Enforcement Administration identified Aybar-Pena as a significant fentanyl distributor.  Aybar-Pena was arrested on March 19, 2026, after a court-authorized search of a house on Chipper Drive in East Hartford where he was living revealed approximately five kilograms of fentanyl.

Aybar-Pena pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, an offense that carries a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life.  A sentencing date is not scheduled

Aybar-Pena has been detained since his arrest.

This matter has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with the assistance of the East Hartford Police Department.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Reed Durham.

This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.