Former Cheshire Resident Sentenced for Operating Heroin Processing Mill

CHESHIRE, CT — Former Cheshire resident Amanda Gambardella, 26, was sentenced to nearly four years in federal prison for operating a heroin processing mill in Hartford, according to U.S. States Attorney Deirdre M. Daly.

• To sign up for Cheshire breaking news alerts and more, click here.

Gambardella’s 46-month prison term is followed by three years of supervised release, Daly announced in a press release on Monday.

The Drug Enforcement Administration’s Hartford Task Force received information that a drug trafficking organization was obtaining large quantities of heroin in New York City and transporting it to Connecticut where it was distributed in the Hartford area.

The investigation revealed that Gambardella was employed by the organization to store and package heroin at her apartment on Adelaide Street in Hartford and that she had rented a storage unit in East Hartford on behalf of the organization, according to authorities.

Investigators seized about $795,990 in cash during a court-authorized search of the East Hartford storage unit on November, 4, 2015.

The next day, investigators searched Gambardella’s Adelaide Street apartment and seized approximately 778 grams of heroin, as well as cutting agents, packaging materials and other paraphernalia associated with a large scale heroin processing mill, according to the press release.

The seized heroin included more than 17,000 bags packaged for street sale and approximately 200 grams of unpackaged heroin.

Gambardella, who has been detained since her arrest on November 5, 2015, pleaded guilty in February to one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin.

Image via Shutterstock