Four Brooklyn men part of an alleged drug crew have been arrested and charged in connection to the overdose death of The Wire actor Michael K. Williams, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
Irvin Cartagena, a 39-year-old also known as “Green Eyes,” was charged in a criminal complaint unsealed in Manhattan federal court on Tuesday with a narcotics conspiracy in which he distributed the fentanyl-laced heroin that resulted in the death of Williams, while alleged co-conspirators Hector Robles, 57, Luis Cruz, 56, and Carlos Macci, 70, were charged as members of the fentanyl and heroin conspiracy, according to another criminal complaint unsealed Wednesday.
“Michael K. Williams, a prominent actor and producer, tragically overdosed in his New York City apartment from fentanyl-laced heroin. Today, along with our law enforcement partners at the NYPD, we announce the arrests of members of a drug crew, including Irvin Cartagena, the man who we allege sold the deadly dose of drugs to Williams,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement. “This is a public health crisis. And it has to stop. Deadly opioids like fentanyl and heroin don’t care about who you are or what you’ve accomplished. They just feed addiction and lead to tragedy.”
All four men have been charged with conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, fentanyl analog, and heroin, according to the Justice Department. If found guilty, the charges carry a minimum sentence of five years in prison, with a maximum of 40 years. Cartagena has also been charged with causing Williams’s death through the conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and a minimum of 20 years.
ACTOR MICHAEL K. WILLIAMS DIED OF ACCIDENTAL DRUG OVERDOSE, MEDICAL EXAMINER REPORTS
Investigators said surveillance video showed an in-person drug sale between Williams and Cartagena the day before the actor was found dead in his apartment in September. Cartagena was arrested on Tuesday in Puerto Rico and is expected in front of federal court on Thursday. Macci, Cruz, and Robles were arrested in New York on Tuesday and are expected in court Wednesday afternoon.
It was not clear who represents the defendants.
A medical examiner in September ruled Williams died of an accidental drug overdose that contained a mix of “fentanyl, p-fluorofentanyl, heroin, and cocaine.” Williams’s family found him dead on the floor of his apartment in New York City. He was 54.
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Williams was open about his struggle with addiction, primarily with cocaine. Williams told the New York Times in 2017 that he almost lost the role of Omar Little on The Wire due to his addiction to cocaine.
