Hartford Man Sentenced to More than Seven Years in Prison for Distributing Heroin

David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JONATHAN TORRES, also known as "Pete" and "Joker," 22, of Hartford, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Janet Bond Arterton to 87 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for heroin distribution.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between January 2011 and January 2012, TORRES and others sold heroin from a back window of a house located at 68 Lawrence Street in Hartford, where TORRES resided. This residence is located across the street from an elementary school and TORRES used underage individuals to help him sell heroin.

During the course of the investigation, TORRES also arranged to purchase four guns from an undercover law enforcement officer in exchange for heroin, but the exchange was not completed prior to TORRES’s arrest on January 19, 2012.

TORRES has been detained since his arrest. On June 21, 2012, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Hartford Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan S. Freimann.

The Project Safe Neighborhoods Initiative is aimed at reducing gun and gang violence, deterring illegal possession of guns, and improving the safety of residents of Connecticut’s cities.