Manchester Man Charged With Fentanyl And Cocaine Distribution Offenses

MANCHESTER, CT — A man from Manchester is facing federal charges in connection with fentanyl and cocaine distribution offenses.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States attorney for the District of Connecticut and Robert Fuller, special agent in charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation said Wednesday that a federal grand jury in Hartford has returned a 14-count indictment charging 44-year-old Manchester resident Roberto Pabon, also known as "Goya," with fentanyl and cocaine distribution offenses.

The indictment was returned on Sept. 11 and Pabon appeared Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert A. Richardson in Hartford and pleaded not guilty to the charges, Avery said.

He has been detained since his arrest on a federal criminal complaint on Aug. 29, 2024.

Case records show that the FBI's Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force has been investigating members of Los Solidos, a Hartford-based street gang, that is involved drug trafficking and other criminal activity. Between December 2023 and July 2024, investigators made multiple controlled purchases of fentanyl and cocaine from Pabon, a member of Los Solidos, Avery said.

Pabon used an apartment on Brown Street in Hartford to store narcotics, and he typically sold drugs to customers in the area of Hartford's South Green Park. Avery said.

According to case records, on Aug. 2, Pabon was arrested at his residence by Manchester police on state charges. A drug scale fell from Pabon’s pocket as he was being apprehended, and a search of his car, which he had just exited, revealed more than 1,300 wax folds of fentanyl, and quantities of crack and powder cocaine.

A related search of another car parked at Pabon’s residence revealed more than 200 grams of raw and packaged fentanyl, approximately 38 grams of crack cocaine, and approximately 5 grams of powder cocaine, case records show.

A search of Pabon’s residence revealed items used to process and package narcotics, and approximately $8,800 in cash, according to case records.

Authorities said that, in August, while Pabon was released on a $750,000 bond in his state case, FBI Task Force investigators made two controlled purchases of fentanyl from him at a gas station on Wethersfield Avenue in Hartford.

The indictment charges Pabon with nine counts of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of fentanyl; four counts of possession with intent to distribute, and distribution of, fentanyl and cocaine; and one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine.

Each charge carries a maximum prison term of 20 years.

The case is being investigated by the FBI's Northern Connecticut Gang Task Force and the Manchester Police Department.