Hartford Gang Member Sentenced to Prison on Drug, Firearm Convictions

HARTFORD, CT — A Los Solidos member was sentenced Friday to more than five years in prison for possessing crack cocaine and a firearm, according to Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut.

Eduardo Zayas, also known as “Za,” 38, of East Hartford, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to 65 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, Daly said.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in Sept. 2014, the FBI’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force and Hartford Police Department initiated an investigation into narcotics distribution, firearms trafficking and acts of violence carried out by members and associates of Los Solidos in Hartford’s South End. The investigation, which included the use of court-authorized wiretaps and controlled purchases of heroin, crack cocaine and firearms, resulted in federal charges against approximately 30 individuals, Daly said.

On May 15, 2015, Hartford police arrested Zayas after he traveled to a parking lot to meet his drug supplier, who was in possession of approximately 320 grams of crack. A subsequent search of an apartment on New Britain Avenue in Hartford connected to Zayas revealed a .25 caliber handgun, a magazine with four live .25 caliber rounds, approximately 52 grams of crack, items used to process and package narcotics and $4,120 in cash, Daly said.

Zayas has been detained since his federal arrest on June 15, 2015. On May 5, 2016, he pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of cocaine base (“crack”), Daly said.

Judge Bolden also ordered Zayas to forfeit a 2005 Acura RL, a 2002 GMC Denali, and the cash that was seized at the time of his arrest in May 2015, according to Daly.

The FBI Task Force includes members of the Hartford Police Department, East Hartford Police Department, Connecticut State Police and Connecticut Department of Correction. The Hartford Police Department’s Vice and Narcotics unit, Major Crimes unit, Shooting Task Force and South Conditions Unit provided valuable assistance to the investigation, and the U.S. Marshals Service and Capitol Region Emergency Response Team (CREST) assisted with the arrests, Daly said.

Photo credit: Shutterstock