Dominican Sentenced To Prison In Hartford Fentanyl Conspiracy: Feds

HARTFORD, CT — A Hartford man and citizen of the Dominican Republic was sentenced to four years in federal prison for his role in a fentanyl trafficking conspiracy that investigators said operated out of a Hartford apartment.

On Thursday, June 25, U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill sentenced Oniel Acosta-Reyes, 27, to 48 months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut, an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration's Hartford Task Force found that members of a Hartford-area drug trafficking organization were using an apartment on Franklin Avenue as a stash location for narcotics.

Investigators stopped Acosta-Reyes and another individual on Aug. 25, 2025, after they exited the apartment and placed a large cooler into their vehicle.

Authorities said a search of the cooler uncovered a kilogram brick of fentanyl, additional bags of powdered fentanyl, a cutting agent, and components for a mechanical drug press.

A subsequent search of the Franklin Avenue apartment uncovered additional drug trafficking paraphernalia, a kilogram-capacity drug press, and two firearms, according to prosecutors.

Acosta-Reyes has remained in federal custody since his arrest on Aug. 25, 2025. He pleaded guilty on March 24, 2026, to the fentanyl conspiracy charge before receiving his sentence on Thursday.

For more information on the case, click on this link.