Heroin Dealer Sentenced with Branford Police Department's Assistance

The following is a press release from the United State Department of Justice

        David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that Raymond Carson, also known as “Dirt,” 38, of New Haven, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Ellen Bree Burns in New Haven to 63 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.

Carson is one of 108 individuals charged as a result of “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven.  Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants and seizures of narcotics and firearms.  The investigation revealed that Carson conspired with others to purchase and redistribute heroin.        

Carson's criminal history includes numerous felony convictions, including two convictions for possession of narcotics, one conviction for sale of narcotics, and seven weapon convictions, including firearm offenses.  He was on state parole at the time of the heroin distribution offense.       

This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments.  The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.       

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.