U.S. Department of Justice
United States Attorney
District of Connecticut
www.justice.gov/ct
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 2, 2024
CONTACT:
Tom Carson
Public Affairs Officer
(203) 821-3722
(203) 996-1393 (cell)
Six Alleged Members of
Norwalk-Area Drug Trafficking Ring Arrested
Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut,
Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement
Administration for New England, and Norwalk Police Chief James Walsh today
announced that the following six individuals have been charged with federal offenses
stemming from their alleged involvement in narcotics trafficking in and around
Norwalk:
JOSE ORJUELA, aka
“Hov,” 35, of Norwalk
KIMBERLY DELACRUZ, aka
“K,” 29, of Norwalk
JELSON PEREZ, aka
“Spank,” 41, of Norwalk
CHRISTOPHER POMPONI, 58,
of Darien
DARRELL SANDERS, aka
“Deezo,” 54, of Norwalk
ALEJANDRO MARTIN DE LOS SANTOS, aka
“Marcelino Lopez,” 45, of Norwalk
As
alleged in court documents and statements made in court, the Drug Enforcement
Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task
Force and Norwalk Police Department identified Orjuela as the leader of a drug
trafficking organization that distributed large quantities of fentanyl, heroin,
and cocaine in the Norwalk area. The investigation, which has included
court-authorized wiretaps and controlled purchases of narcotics, revealed that
Orjuela and others transported kilogram-quantities of cocaine from Texas and
Ohio, and kilogram-quantities of fentanyl and heroin from New York City, and
distributed the narcotics in and around Norwalk through a network of
individuals, including Perez, Pomponi, and Sanders. At times, De Los Santos
supplied the Orjuela organization with narcotics. Orjuela and his
girlfriend, Delacruz, stored narcotics and drug proceeds at their Marlin Drive
residence in Norwalk, and also used Pomponi’s Pine Brook Lane residence in
Darien to store narcotics and drug proceeds, convert cocaine into crack
cocaine, and package narcotics for street sale.
On
April 29, 2024, Orjuela, Delacruz, Perez, Pomponi, Sanders and De Los Santos
were arrested on federal criminal complaints charging each with conspiracy to
possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, controlled substances;
possession with intent to distribute controlled substances; and use of a telephone
to facilitate a narcotics trafficking felony. Pomponi is also charged
with using or maintaining a drug-involved premises. Several additional
individuals were arrested on related state charges.
In
association with the arrests, investigators executed multiple federal search
warrants and seized approximately 15,000 dose bags of suspected fentanyl,
approximately 350 grams of raw heroin, quantities of cocaine and crack cocaine,
a 9mm handgun and ammunition, and a 2021 Ford F-150.
Orjuela,
Perez, Pomponi, Sanders, and De Los Santos are detained, and Delacruz is
released on bond.
U.S.
Attorney Avery stressed that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence
of guilt. Charges are only allegations and each defendant is presumed innocent
unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Drug Enforcement
Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task
Force, the Norwalk Police Department, the Darien Police Department, the
Stamford Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals Service. The Task Force
includes personnel from the DEA Bridgeport Resident Office, the Connecticut
State Police, and the Norwalk, Stamford, Stratford, Milford, and Danbury Police
Departments.
The
case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lauren C. Clark and
Kenneth L. Gresham through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces
(OCDETF) Program. OCDETF identifies, disrupts and dismantles drug
traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations
through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the
strengths of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
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