CARBON COUNTY MAN WHO LET DRUG DEALERS SELL FROM HIS HOUSE SENTENCED TO 37 MONTHS IN PRISON

Martin C. Carlson, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, announced that a Palmerton man who allowed drug traffickers to use his residence to store and distribute cocaine and crack cocaine during 2006 and 2007, was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge James M. Munley to serve 37 months in federal prison.

Carlson stated that Paul Lopatovsky, age 29, pleaded guilty to the offense on March 31, 2008. Lopatovsky was indicted by a federal grand jury on April 4, 2007, as a result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Pennsylvania State Police, and local police in Carbon County. Lopatovsky was one of 11 defendants charged in the case. Nine of the defendants have entered guilty pleas in federal court. One defendant is a fugitive. The alleged leader of the drug ring, Imani Simelani, is awaiting trial.

Judge Munley also ordered Lopatovsky to serve two years of supervised release after serving his prison sentence, and to pay a fine of $1,000 and a special assessment of $100.

Carlson noted that the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francis P. Sempa.

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