United States Drug Enforcement Administration

APR 25 - NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Michael J. Ferguson Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England and Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that James Butler, 24, of Montville, waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty today in New Haven federal court to one count of distribution of heroin.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on May 31, 2016, members of the Montville Police Department responded to an apartment on Route 32 for an “untimely death” investigation.  Upon arrival, officers found a deceased 34-year-old woman lying face down on the bathroom floor. 

The Connecticut’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner subsequently determined the cause of the woman’s death to be “Acute Ethanol and Fentanyl Intoxication.”  The investigation revealed that the victim was supplied with heroin/fentanyl by Butler.  Distribution of heroin carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years.  Butler is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford on July 12, 2017.  Butler has been detained since his arrest on January 31, 2017.

This investigation is being conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Connecticut State Police, Groton Police Department, Montville Police Department, New London Police Department, Statewide Narcotics Task Force - East, and the Regional Community Enhancement Task Force.