Groton Man Gets Prison For Cocaine Trafficking Conspiracy Role: Feds

GROTON, CT —Steven Collazo, 32, of Groton, was sentenced to serve 18 months in a federal prison for his part in a cocaine trafficking conspiracy Wednesday, according to the Justice Department.

Once released from prison, he'll serve three years of supervised release in home detention, U.S. Attorney for CT Vanessa Roberts Avery said.

According to Avery, court documents and statements made in court, in April 2021, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Narcotics and Bulk Cash Trafficking Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration began investigating a cocaine trafficking operation headed by Carlos Antonio Crespo-Febus.

The investigation revealed that Crespo-Febus was coordinating the shipment of parcels, typically containing two kilograms of cocaine, from U.S. post offices in Puerto Rico to various “drop addresses” in New London County, Avery said.

Collazo, who served as the primary “runner” for Crespo-Febus, picked up parcels from the drop addresses and delivered them to Crespo-Febus at Crespo-Febus’s New London residence, prosecutors said.

Investigators intercepted and seized around 16 kilograms of cocaine that were mailed from Puerto Rico to Connecticut, and identified dozens of other suspicious parcels that likely contained kilogram quantities of cocaine, Avery noted

Crespo-Febus and Collazo were arrested in September 2021.

Crespo-Febus pleaded guilty in October 2022 and is jailed awaiting sentencing. In November 2022, Collazo pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute cocaine, Avery said. Released on a $100,000 bond, he's required to report to prison Oct. 4, per federal prosecutors.

This matter has been investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Narcotics and Bulk Cash Trafficking Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from the New London and Town of Groton Police Departments. The Task Force includes members from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Postal Service – Office of the Inspector General, the Connecticut Army National Guard, and the Hartford, New Britain, Meriden and Town of Groton Police Departments. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Konstantin Lantsman.