Waterbury Drug Trafficker Sentenced to More than 11 Years in Federal Prison

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOSE DUPREY, also known as "Red" and "Colorado," 53, of Waterbury, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to 141 months of imprisonment, followed by eight years of supervised release, for trafficking kilograms of cocaine, fentanyl, and heroin, and for violating the conditions of his supervised release from a prior federal narcotics trafficking conviction.

According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from a DEA New Haven Task Force and Waterbury Police Department-led investigation into drug trafficking in and around the city of Waterbury. The investigation, which included court-authorized wiretaps on multiple phones, physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, and motor vehicle stops that resulted in the seizure of drugs and cash proceeds, revealed that Duprey trafficked kilogram-quantities of cocaine, heroin, and fentanyl. Duprey used his place of employment to supply narcotics to other drug distributors, and he used his girlfriend's business, located on Straits Turnpike in Middlebury, to store narcotics and other items.

Duprey and 13 other individuals identified during this investigation were arrested on May 25, 2022. On that date, a search of Duprey's Waterbury residence and his Middlebury stash location revealed approximately 10 kilograms of cocaine, two kilograms of heroin, two kilograms of fentanyl, and more than $107,000 in cash.

Duprey has been detained since his arrest. On February 10, 2023, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, and possession with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of heroin.

Duprey's criminal history, which spans more than 30 years, includes a federal conviction in 2008 for trafficking heroin. He was sentenced, as a career offender, to 161 months of imprisonment for that offense, and he was on federal supervised release at the time of his criminal conduct in 2022.

This investigation has been conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration New Haven Task Force and the Waterbury Police Department, with the assistance of DEA offices in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; U.S. Marshals Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; Connecticut State Police; Connecticut Department of Correction; Connecticut State Parole; and the Naugatuck, Ansonia, West Haven, Meriden and East Haven Police Departments.

U.S. Attorney Avery thanked the Waterbury State's Attorney's Office for its cooperation in the investigation and prosecution of this matter.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brendan J. Keefe and Nathaniel J. Gentile through the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Program. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs and transnational criminal organizations through a prosecutor-led and intelligence-driven approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.