Norwalk Heroin & Coke Kingpin Gets 10 Years

BRIDGEPORT, CT – Kenneth Brickhouse, 36, formerly of West Haven, is headed back to federal prison after receiving a 120-month sentence today for running a heroin and cocaine operation out of Norwalk. U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden handed down the sentence, followed by five years of supervised release, effectively slamming the door on Brickhouse’s latest criminal enterprise.

The case, spearheaded by the DEA’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area Task Force alongside the Stamford, Norwalk, and Connecticut State Police, revealed a sophisticated drug distribution network. Investigators utilized court-authorized wiretaps, undercover buys, and relentless physical surveillance to build their case against Brickhouse. The operation exposed how Brickhouse sourced narcotics – cocaine and heroin – from individuals like Bobby Gutierrez, then pushed the poison onto both street-level customers and larger distributors.

Between February and May of 2016, Brickhouse repeatedly sold heroin and cocaine to a confidential informant. Simultaneously, investigators were intercepting a flood of incriminating calls and texts, detailing Brickhouse’s every move in the drug trade. The net tightened on May 26, 2016, when Brickhouse was arrested and a Norwalk apartment he used as a stash house and processing center was raided. Inside, police found roughly 500 bags of heroin, two baggies of cocaine, a loaded 9mm pistol, and ammunition. A subsequent search of a vehicle connected to Brickhouse turned up a .357 revolver and more ammunition – clear evidence of his intent to protect his illicit business.

Brickhouse hasn’t tasted freedom since his arrest. He pleaded guilty on September 23, 2016, to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. This wasn’t his first rodeo. Brickhouse’s rap sheet includes prior state convictions for crack cocaine possession with intent to sell, as well as a hefty federal sentence in 2001 for similar drug charges, plus firearm offenses. He already served approximately 127 months before being released in November 2011 – a lesson clearly not learned.

The DEA’s Bridgeport HIDTA Task Force is a multi-agency force comprised of officers from Bridgeport, Stamford, Stratford, Norwalk, Milford and Trumbull, as well as the Connecticut State Police, demonstrating a unified front against drug trafficking in the region. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Kaplan and Heather Cherry prosecuted the case, ensuring Brickhouse faced the full weight of the law.

This conviction sends a clear message: dealing death for profit in Connecticut will be met with a long stay in a federal penitentiary. Brickhouse’s decade-long sentence is a testament to the dedication of law enforcement and the unwavering pursuit of justice in the face of the opioid crisis.