A Young Mother Died in West Virginia after Ingesting Pills Distributed by the Defendant
Earlier today, at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, Edward Carrillo, also known as “Super Ed," was sentenced by United States District Judge Brian M. Cogan to 10 ½ years’ imprisonment for conspiring to distribute fentanyl, to be followed by a term of four years’ supervised release. The fentanyl the defendant distributed was linked to the overdose death of a young mother in West Virginia in April 2015. The judge also ordered forfeiture in the amount of $150,000.
Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, James J. Hunt, Special Agent-in-Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and James P. O’Neill, Commissioner, New York City Police Department (NYPD), announced the sentence.
“The defendant peddled fentanyl from New York City to West Virginia with callous disregard for the human consequences of this dangerous drug," stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde. “Carrillo’s sentence should serve as a message that fentanyl dealers who promote and profit from this deadly epidemic will be held accountable for their crimes."
“What started as a local investigation targeting a crack cocaine distribution organization turned into a murder mystery upon the death of a young pregnant mother in West Virginia," DEA Special Agent in Charge James Hunt stated. “Fentanyl doesn’t discriminate against users, nor do drug dealers whose only concern is profit. Law Enforcement will continue to identify dealers and traffickers responsible for fueling opioid abuse and the rising number of fentanyl-related overdoses."
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Justice, drug overdoses have become the leading cause of death for Americans under the age of 50. Between 2012 and 2015, fentanyl overdose deaths in West Virginia increased by more than 20 percent, according to the DEA. The recent rise in overdose deaths has been driven in large part by fentanyl-a drug that has been described as 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. Opioids have been a particular problem in West Virginia where the defendant and his co-conspirators trafficked substantial amounts of fentanyl. One of those deaths was a young mother, whom Carrillo and his co-conspirators believed they killed with their fentanyl pills. Upon learning of the young mother’s death, Carrillo’s co-conspirator was intercepted over a judicially authorized wiretap stating, “the girl went out." When Carrillo asked what the co-conspirator meant by “went out," the co-conspirator left no ambiguity that a young woman had died: “Went out! OD, OD," with ‘OD’ referring to a drug overdose.
According to the government’s sentencing memorandum, in addition to his involvement in the fentanyl conspiracy, the defendant supplied a significant amount of the cocaine that was converted to crack and sold in the Queensbridge community. He also agreed to commit an armed robbery of an individual believed to be traveling with $110,000. When Carrillo was arrested in December 2016, law enforcement officers recovered a loaded gun at his apartment, which he used as a grow house for marihuana.
On Nov. 16, 2017, co-defendant Terrell Carmichael was sentenced to 51 months’ imprisonment for conspiring to distribute crack-cocaine. The other defendants are awaiting sentencing.
The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Organized Crime and Gangs Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Andrey Spektor and Lindsay K. Gerdes are in charge of the prosecution.
The Defendants:
LASHAWN BALANCE, also known as “Flip"
Age: 41
Princeton, West Virginia
TERRELL CARMICHAEL, also known as “Rell"
Age: 31
Long Island City, New York
EDWARD CARRILLO, also known as “Super Ed"
Age: 43
Manhattan, New York
DARRYL KNOWLES
Age: 29
Bronx, New York
JOHNNIE MONROE, also known as “Nut"
Age: 46
Brooklyn, New York
KYLE WILLIAMS, also known as “Sleepy"
Age: 31
Long Island City, New York
MICHAEL YOUNG, also known as “Littles"
Age: 32
Long Island City, New York
E.D.N.Y. Docket No. 16-CR-617 (BMC)
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
