David B. Fein, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that STEPHEN STOPPER, 47, of Naugatuck, was sentenced on Friday, June 15, by United States District Judge Janet Bond Arterton in New Haven to 24 months of imprisonment months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for trafficking oxycodone.  STOPPER also was ordered to pay a fine in the amount of $2,500.

This matter stems from “Operation Blue Coast,” an investigation headed by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force into the large-scale trafficking of oxycodone pills from Florida to Connecticut.  The investigation revealed that an individual regularly purchased oxycodone from suppliers in Florida, transported the oxycodone to Connecticut by commercial airline or automobile, and sold the pills for profit to various Connecticut-based narcotics dealers.  After exchanging low-denomination currency for larger notes, he transported the proceeds of his oxycodone sales from Connecticut to Florida, either by having a courier drive the money or by using commercial airline flights.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on June 6, 2011, STOPPER and an associate drove to a prearranged location in Connecticut to purchase approximately 700 oxycodone pills that had been trafficked from Florida.  STOPPER’s associate was detained after he met a narcotics supplier to consummate the transaction and officers seized $7,000 that he possessed to purchase the pills.  Officers then approached STOPPER, who was waiting in his pickup truck, and found him in possession of a .357 revolver.

STOPPER was arrested on September 13, 2011.  On March 16, 2012, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute oxycodone.

Twenty individuals, including three Transportation Security Administration officers, a Florida State Trooper and a Westchester County Police Officer, have been charged as a result of this investigation.

This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force, which includes personnel from the Connecticut State Police and the Bridgeport, Milford, Norwalk, Stamford and Westport Police Departments; the Drug Enforcement Administration in Florida and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General. In addition, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Greenwich, Monroe, Danbury and Waterbury Police Departments have assisted the investigation.

U.S. Attorney Fein also acknowledged the cooperation of the Westchester County Department of Public Safety and the Florida Highway Patrol, and the substantial assistance provided by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.

This case is being prosecuted in the District of Connecticut by Assistant United States Attorneys Rahul Kale and Tracy Lee Dayton.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACT:

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

 

 

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