Current:Home > reviewsFounder of New York narcotics delivery service gets 12 years for causing 3 overdose deaths -VitalWealth Strategies
Founder of New York narcotics delivery service gets 12 years for causing 3 overdose deaths
View
Date:2025-04-12 11:26:27
The founder of a New York drug delivery service has been sentenced to 150 months in prison for his role in distributing cocaine laced with fentanyl that killed three people and hospitalized another, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced Wednesday.
Jose Luis Tejada Aybar, 41, of Miami, was sentenced Tuesday and convicted of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, according to court documents. In addition to the prison term, Tejada was sentenced to five years of supervised release and a $100 mandatory special assessment, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York said in a news release.
Tuesday's sentencing is the latest case involving drug courier services that federal authorities have been increasingly cracking down on for deadly overdoses.
"The sentencing of Jose Luis Tejada Aybar marks a crucial step in bringing justice to the victims not only of the Cab Louie Delivery Service but also those victims of fentanyl and other lethal drugs," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement. "The devastating consequences of Tejada’s operation underscore the importance of dismantling criminal enterprises like this..."
Drug overdose deaths have surged from 2019 to 2021, with more than 106,000 drug overdose deaths reported in 2021, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Of those deaths, more than 70,000 people died of a fentanyl overdose in 2021 — double the amount in 2019 — according to the most recent federal data available.
Researchers have deemed the country's fentanyl issue as a "fourth wave" of the opioid crisis as officials, families, and advocates have called for more action to address addiction and curb the flow of illegally manufactured fentanyl smuggled into the United States.
America's addiction crisis:It's not just fentanyl. These drugs play a growing role.
Jose Luis Tejada Aybar started an 'on-demand drug courier service'
Tejada started the Cab Louie Delivery Service in March 2018, which delivered cocaine to customers in the Bronx and Westchester County, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The "on-demand drug courier service" sent drivers to deliver cocaine to customers after they were contacted through one of the business’s rotating dispatch lines, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. From March 2018 to September 2021, the Cab Louie Delivery Service sold more than 15 kilograms of cocaine, which is equivalent to nearly 24,000 bags of cocaine.
Tejada eventually hired employees when his business expanded, including Allen Alexis Abisada Guzman and Martin Perez who both delivered cocaine for the business, court documents stated. Abisada and Perez were previously sentenced to 98 months and 70 months in prison, respectively, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Tejada also sourced cocaine for the business; obtained and operated its dispatch phones; and provided Abisada with a vehicle to deliver the cocaine, according to court documents.
Cocaine laced with fentanyl led to 3 overdose deaths
Cocaine that was tainted with fentanyl was distributed from the Cab Louie Delivery Service to three different customers in September 2021, court documents stated.
"The deadly mix caused the overdose deaths of Marsha Clarke of the Bronx, New York, and Martin Banks and Edward Lynch of Yonkers, New York, as well as the hospitalization of Clarke’s husband," the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
On Sept. 19, 2019, Abisada delivered cocaine to Clarke, Banks, and Lynch, who all died from cute intoxication by the combined effects of cocaine and fentanyl, among other drugs, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Authorities found the three dead within two days and Clarke’s husband was found unresponsive.
Clarke was transported to a hospital for a fentanyl overdose where he was in a coma "for a period," the U.S. Attorney's Office said. When Clarke's husband emerged from the coma, prosecutors said he had to relearn how to speak, how to feed himself, how to use the restroom, and how to walk.
Around Oct. 5, 2019, Clarke's husband reported to New York Police Department personnel that he and his wife had purchased the cocaine from the Cab Louie Delivery Service, according to court documents.
Despite learning of the overdose deaths through a local news article, prosecutors said Tejada saved the article on his phone and continued business operations. Between November 2019 and February 2020, a New York Police Department undercover officer made six controlled purchases of cocaine from the Cab Louie Delivery Service, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
'That level of violence is terrifying':Mexican cartel targets tranquil Puget Sound city
Latest case involving drug courier services
Recent cases involving drug delivery services and overdose deaths have resulted in prison time sentences.
In October 2023, a New Jersey man was sentenced to 30 years in prison for operating a drug courier service that distributed drugs for over seven years. The delivery service sent cocaine secretly laced with fentanyl to three customers across Manhattan, officials said.
The three New York residents all died after consuming the fentanyl mixed into a batch of cocaine.
The leader of another New York drug delivery service, named "Mike's Candyshop," was sentenced to 22 years in prison in August 2022, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. The delivery service distributed heroin and cocaine, which was sometimes laced with fentanyl, on-demand to customers in New York City.
Ariel Tavarez was sentenced in connection with distributing narcotics that led to the 2018 death of Colin Kroll, the co-founder of the video hosting service Vine and the trivia game application HQ Trivia, the Drug Enforcement Administration said.
Contributing: Jeanine Santucci, Minnah Arshad and Candy Woodall, USA TODAY
veryGood! (3)
Related
- New Orleans mayor’s former bodyguard making first court appearance after July indictment
- ‘Beyond cruel’: Newsom retaliates against this LA suburb for its ban on homeless shelters
- Nevada politician guilty of using $70,000 meant for statue of slain officer for personal costs
- How Taylor Swift Gave a Nod to Travis Kelce on National Boyfriend Day
- Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
- What kind of dog is Snoopy? Here's some history on Charlie Brown's canine companion.
- Nibi the ‘diva’ beaver to stay at rescue center, Massachusetts governor decides
- Judge refuses to dismiss Alabama lawsuit over solar panel fees
- Sonya Massey's father decries possible release of former deputy charged with her death
- Biden’s student loan cancellation free to move forward as court order expires
Ranking
- Taylor Swift Eras Archive site launches on singer's 35th birthday. What is it?
- Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's Daughter Sunday Rose Has the Most Unique Accent of All
- A Michigan man is charged with killing and dismembering a janitor he met on the Grindr dating app
- Amid Hurricane Helene’s destruction, sports organizations launch relief efforts to aid storm victims
- Kansas City Chiefs CEO's Daughter Ava Hunt Hospitalized After Falling Down a Mountain
- Greening of Antarctica is Another Sign of Significant Climate Shift on the Frozen Continent
- Drew Barrymore Details Sexiest Kiss With Chloë Sevigny
- Secret Lives of Mormon Wives’ Whitney Leavitt Addresses Rumors About Her Husband’s Sexuality
Recommendation
Former Milwaukee hotel workers charged with murder after video shows them holding down Black man
Jobs report is likely to show another month of modest but steady hiring gains
'Nothing like this': National Guard rushes supplies to towns cut off by Helene
Nibi the ‘diva’ beaver to stay at rescue center, Massachusetts governor decides
3 years after the NFL added a 17th game, the push for an 18th gets stronger
One disaster to another: Family of Ukrainian refugees among the missing in NC
Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's Daughter Sunday Rose Has the Most Unique Accent of All
College sports ‘fraternity’ jumping in to help athletes from schools impacted by Hurricane Helene