United States Attorney's Office District of Connecticut
Press Release

HARTFORD MAN SENTENCED TO 57 MONTHS IN FEDERAL PRISON FOR ROLE IN HARTFORD DRUG RING

David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that HIPOLITO MANUEL GUTIERREZ, 56, of Hillside Avenue, Hartford, was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Warren W. Eginton in Bridgeport 57 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release, for his participation in a Hartford-area narcotics trafficking ring.  On February 23, 2010, GUTIERREZ pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.

This matter stems from “Operation Solid Gold,” a joint law enforcement investigation headed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force.  The year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps, controlled purchases of cocaine and heroin, and physical surveillance.  As a result of the investigation, 55 individuals were charged with various offenses related to the distribution of cocaine and heroin in and around Hartford.

According to court documents and statements made in court, GUTIERREZ was intercepted multiple times over a wiretap engaging in drug-related conversations with another member of the conspiracy.  Intercepted calls and physical surveillance revealed that GUTIERREZ purchased heroin and cocaine on credit from his co-conspirator, and then sold the narcotics to his own customers.  The intercepted calls also revealed that GUTIERREZ served as a middleman in a large heroin transaction between his co-conspirator and others.

GUTIERREZ has been detained since his arrest on February 10, 2009.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force, the Statewide Cooperative Crime Control Task Force of the Connecticut State Police and the Hartford Police Department, with assistance from the Statewide Organized Crime Investigative Task Force of the Connecticut State Police, Connecticut State Police, Troop H, and the Connecticut Department of Correction.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Brian P. Leaming and Geoffrey M. Stone.

CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
thomas.carson@usdoj.gov