New Haven man gets 7 years in connection with 2 OD deaths

A 51-year-old New Haven man, who sold drugs that involved two overdose deaths, will be spending the next seven years behind bars.

Alex Borrero, also known as “Red,” was sentenced Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 84 months of imprisonment, followed by six years of supervised release, for distributing heroin and fentanyl.

Borrero, who is released on bond, is required to report to prison on Aug. 14.

John H. Durham, U.S. Attorney for Connecticut, said in a statement that the case stems from an ongoing statewide initiative targeting narcotics dealers who distribute heroin, fentanyl or opioids that cause death or serious injury to users.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on Feb. 28, 2017, the Wallingford Police Department and emergency medical personnel responded to a report of an untimely death of a 25-year-old male at a residence in Wallingford. At the scene, officers seized drug and non-drug evidence, including the victim’s cellphone and six empty wax folds bags that contained a white powder residue.

The state Chief Medical Examiner determined that the victim’s death was caused by a combination of fentanyl and alprazolam (Xanax).

“The investigation revealed that Borrero, who had been selling heroin and fentanyl in the New Haven area, was the source of the fentanyl involved in the overdose death of the victim. The investigation also revealed that another of Borrero’s drug customers, a 31-year-old male, died of an overdose in Branford on May 18, 2017,” Durham said.

Borrero was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on October 23, 2017. At the time of his arrest, he possessed approximately 30 grams of heroin and approximately $1,900 in cash.

On May 15, 2018, Borrero pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, heroin and fentanyl.

Borrero’s criminal history dates to 1988 and includes 11 felony convictions, including a federal conviction for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute heroin. In 1998, he was sentenced in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, in Orlando, to 188 months of imprisonment. He was released from federal prison in 2011.

This matter is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force and the Wallingford and Branford Police Departments.