Sean Thomas, Fentanyl Distribution, Connecticut 2020

A Rocky Hill man has pleaded guilty to distributing fentanyl, a highly addictive opioid that can be deadly in small quantities.

According to authorities, 32-year-old Sean Thomas was arrested on June 2, 2020, after a high-speed chase in Hartford. Thomas was driving a car when detectives approached him, believing he was conducting a narcotics transaction. The driver of the car, Tafarie Green, accelerated and drove at the detectives, who leaped out of the way. Green then drove at a high rate of speed onto a sidewalk and through two chain-link fences before crashing into a tree.

Thomas was immediately apprehended, and a subsequent search of his residence and his smoke shop, Puff Paradise, revealed a large quantity of fentanyl. Investigators found over 100 grams of unpackaged fentanyl, approximately 3,500 bags of packaged fentanyl, and $16,511 in cash.

Thomas pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl. He is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant on April 20, 2022, at which time he faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 40 years.

Thomas is currently out on a $100,000 bond pending sentencing. His co-defendant, Tafarie Green, was arrested on July 13, 2020, and pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm by a felon. Green was sentenced to 62 months of imprisonment on August 31, 2021.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force and the Hartford Police Department’s Vice, Intelligence and Narcotics Unit, with the assistance of the Connecticut Forensic Science Laboratory. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian P. Leaming.

Sean Thomas’s guilty plea marks a significant victory in the fight against fentanyl distribution in Connecticut. The highly addictive opioid has been linked to numerous overdose deaths in the state, and law enforcement agencies are working tirelessly to bring those responsible to justice.

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