Milford Man Who Distributed Drugs to Overdose Victim Sentenced to 21 Months in Federal Prison

John H. Durham, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ANTHONY AMATO, 31, of Milford, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 21 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing fentanyl and heroin.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on August 26, 2019, the Milford Police Department and emergency medical personnel responded to a Milford rooming house on a report of a drug overdose at the location.  Inside the residence, a 28-year-old male was pronounced deceased.  At the scene, investigators interviewed witnesses and collected evidence related to narcotics use, including needles and wax folds, some of which contained suspected heroin.

The investigation revealed that the overdose victim and Amato, who resided in another room in the rooming house, were together in the afternoon of August 24, 2019.  On August 29, 2019, a court-authorized search of Amato’s room revealed multiple ripped wax folds and other narcotics-related evidence.  Some of the wax folds were marked with the same stamp as the wax folds found in the victim’s room.  Laboratory analysis of the wax folds revealed fentanyl and heroin residue.

Subsequent review of text communications between Amato and the victim revealed that Amato provided the victim with heroin on August 24, 2019.

Amato’s criminal history includes multiple convictions for narcotics-related offenses in Connecticut.

Amato has been detained since his federal arrest on September 10, 2019.  On January 3, 2020, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and heroin.

This investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force and the Milford Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Maria del Pilar Gonzalez.