BUFFALO MAN SENTENCED FOR ROLE IN HEROIN DISTRIBUTION ORGANIZATION

BUFFALO, N.Y.-- United States Attorney Terrance P. Flynn announced that Richard Vega, 28, of Buffalo, New York, who was convicted of conspiracy to distribute, and possession with intent to distribute, 1 kilograms or more of cocaine on December 12, 2007, was sentenced to 51 months imprisonment and 3 years supervised release by U.S. District Judge William M. Skretny.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy C. Lynch, who handled the case, stated that the defendant has been in custody since his arrest on August 24, 2007, by Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The investigation leading to the defendant’s conviction was aided significantly through the use of court-authorized interception orders which permitted federal agents to intercept telephone calls between several of the defendant’s co-conspirators. According to AUSA Lynch, the investigation revealed that the defendant was involved with an organization which distributed heroin out of several houses located in the City of Buffalo. This organization was operated like a business, in that it had several “employees,” who had responsibilities varying from distributing heroin, conducting surveillance to detect law enforcement activity near the organization’s drug houses, and making sure the houses were kept clean.

The sentencing in federal court resulted from an investigation on the part of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Safe Streets Task Force, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Laurie J. Bennett; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge David DeJoe; New York State Police, under the direction of Major Matthew S. Renneman; New York State Parole, under the direction of Regional Director Eugenio Russi and Area Supervisor Donald Snyder; and the Buffalo Police Department, under the direction of H. McCarthy Gibson.