Schenectady Man Sentenced to 96 Months for Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Terence Butler, age 36, of Schenectady, New York, was sentenced yesterday to 96 months in prison for conspiring to distribute controlled substances and money laundering.

Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III and Michael McCarthy, Special Agent in Charge of the Newark Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), made the announcement.

Butler previously admitted to directing multiple people to meet up with a drug distributer in Beverly Hills, California, to obtain drugs to ship back to various Schenectady addresses.  On January 4, 2023, investigators seized a package containing 1.65 kilograms of cocaine that Butler had shipped from California to Schenectady.  On August 3, 2023, investigators seized another Schenectady-bound package containing approximately 10,000 fentanyl pills and 5,000 methamphetamine pills before it could be delivered in Schenectady.  Butler also admitted to having two people funnel $35,000 in drug proceeds back to his supplier over a three-week period in December 2022 and January 2023. 

Acting United States Attorney John A. Sarcone III said, “Terence Butler brought a significant amount of lethal drugs into the Capital District. Now he will be serving a significant amount of prison time for his crimes. Every day, with our law enforcement partners, we work to intercept drugs bound for the Northern District of New York, and to investigate and prosecute those would seek to bring this poison into our communities.”

HSI Special Agent in Charge Michael McCarthy stated: “Terence Butler orchestrated a bold and dangerous operation, trafficking highly lethal drugs, including fentanyl, into the northeast from across the nation. He has now been held accountable for his reckless disregard for public safety. I commend HSI Newark’s Opioid Border Enforcement Security Task Force and our dedicated law enforcement partners for their unwavering commitment to protecting the community and prioritizing the public’s wellbeing above all else.”

United States District Judge Anne M. Nardacci also imposed a 4-year-term of supervised release and ordered the forfeiture of $77,427 in drug proceeds. 

HSI investigated the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan S. Reiner prosecuted.

This case is also part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.