New Haven Heroin Trafficker Sentenced To Prison: Feds

NEW HAVEN, CT — A New Haven man has been sentenced to federal prison for 10 years and 1 month for trafficking heroin, according to a statement from prosecutors. Brian K. Backman, 55, of New Haven, will also serve five years of supervised release.

The case is related to an investigation by the FBI’s New Haven Safe Streets/Gang Task Force and New Haven Police Department that targeted drug trafficking and violent acts by members of the “Island Brothers” street gang in New Haven.

Backman was identified as a supplier of heroin to members of the New Haven drug trafficking organization. He was caught over multiple wiretaps discussing the acquisition of heroin from a supplier in New York for redistribution in and around New Haven.

Prosecutors claimed that on June 16, 2019, Backman sent a courier, Dena Draughn, to pick up a large shipment of heroin from a New York supplier. He then directed an associate, Anderson Atkinson, to meet Draughn at a Hamden parking lot to retrieve the heroin.

Investigators arrested Draughn and Atkinson after they met at the parking lot, and seized approximately 10,000 bags of heroin with a net weight of approximately 300 grams.

Backman was indicted on 15 counts by a grand jury on July 9. On Oct. 28, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin.

Backman’s criminal history spans more than 30 years and includes convictions in three states and a federal conviction in the Southern District of New York.