North Tonawanda Man Sentenced on Drug Charges

BUFFALO—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Anthony Lamarand, 32, of North Tonawanda, New York, who was convicted of conspiring to distribute cocaine, was sentenced to 92 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael L. McCabe, who handled the case, stated that Lamarand was involved in a large-scale drug trafficking organization in parts of Niagara and northern Erie Counties between January and July 2009. During this time, Lamarand distributed, on average, one kilogram of powder cocaine every month to multiple customers in the Northtowns. The defendant also fled the area on July 30, 2009 as federal authorities attempted to execute an arrest warrant in this case. Lamarand was later apprehended near Atlanta, Georgia in August 2009.

The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation on the part of agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christopher M. Piehota; the Niagara County Drug Task Force, under the direction of Sheriff James Votour; the Niagara Falls Police Department, under the direction of Superintendent John Chella; and the Amherst Police Department, under the direction of Chief John Askey.