Hartford Man Sentenced to 33 Months in Federal Prison for Trafficking Fentanyl and Cocaine

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that LUIS IVAN DIAZ, 26, of Hartford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 33 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for trafficking fentanyl and cocaine.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the Connecticut State Police obtained an arrest warrant for Diaz after his DNA was found on a gun that was thrown from a vehicle during a State Police pursuit on March 8, 2022.  The Drug Enforcement Administration’s Hartford Task Force had also identified Diaz as a fentanyl trafficker.  Diaz was located and arrested on state charges on November 3, 2022.  At the time of his arrest, Diaz possessed approximately 35 grams of fentanyl, 23 grams of cocaine, and five grams of crack cocaine.

Diaz was charged by indictment on April 26, 2023.  On June 6, 2023, he was arrested pursuant to a federal arrest warrant at the Hartford Superior Courthouse, where he had a pending state case.  At the time of his arrest, a search of a fanny pack he possessed revealed approximately 40 grams of fentanyl and 18 grams of crack.

Diaz has been detained since his federal arrest.  On January 2, 2024, he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine.

The DEA’s Hartford Task Force includes personnel from the DEA Hartford Resident Office, the Connecticut State Police, and the Bristol, Hartford, East Hartford, Enfield, Manchester, New Britain, Rocky Hill, Wethersfield, and Windsor Locks Police Departments.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kenneth L. Gresham and Jocelyn Courtney Kaoutzanis, and Trial Attorney Brian P. Leaming of the Justice Department’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section.