Man who delivered heroin, fentanyl to Norwich to serve 30 months

A Massachusetts man who was traveling to Norwich twice a week to distribute a mixture of heroin and fentanyl called “China white” was sentenced Wednesday in U.S. District Court to 30 months in prison for trafficking fentanyl.

Elias Escarraman, 35, formerly of Springfield and Worcester, was arrested after arriving in Norwich on May 15, 2017, with approximately 2,000 bags of the drug, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. Investigators had made multiple controlled purchases from him in April and May. They purchased 1,000 bags of the drug from him for $2,500 and arranged to buy another 2,000 bags the next day in exchange for $5,000.

A lab analysis determined that Escarraman possessed and distributed more than 66 grams of fentanyl during the investigation.

He has been detained since his arrest. On Nov. 15, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

As part of the sentence, Judge Vanessa L. Bryant ordered him to forfeit a 2008 Mercedes-Benz ML350 that he drove to the meet location on May 15 and was seized at the time of his arrest. She also imposed three years of supervised release.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Norwich Police Department and the Springfield Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Dave Vatti.