Heroin Dealer Charged With Manslaughter After OD Death: DA

A Mastic man accused of being the leader of a heroin-fentanyl drug ring on Long Island has now been charged with second degree manslaughter in connection with the death of man who overdosed, Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota said Wednesday.

Roxy Headley Jr., 29, who is also associated with a house on Lincoln Avenue in Deer Park, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a 10-count indictment, Spota said.

“We have direct evidence that Headley sold the heroin and fentanyl to the North Babylon man who fatally overdosed on the morning of May 18," he said. "The medical examiner has reported the victim’s death was caused by the overdose of heroin and fentanyl, and at the crime scene, detectives found a needle and an empty glassine bag stamped with the word “Aleve."

During the investigation of the sources of the deadly fentanyl-heroin mix linked to 10 overdose deaths on Long Island, task force investigators learned Headley was known to sell fentanyl-laced heroin bearing the “Aleve” stamp, Spota said.

At a series of arraignments Wednesday in Riverhead, Headley and five of his co-defendants arrested last month pleaded not guilty to a superseding indictment containing, among other charges, one count of operating as a major trafficker, an A-1 felony that upon conviction carries a maximum prison term of 25 years to life.

The Drug Enforcement Administration has reported that drug overdoses related to fentanyl “represent a significant threat to public health and safety.”

Fentanyl is considered to be the most potent opioid available for use in medical treatment and is potentially lethal at very low levels, up to 100 times more potent than morphine and 30 to 50 times more potent than heroin, authorities said.

“Arrests can’t reverse a fatal overdose, but can send a message to dealers that the consequences of their actions will be accounted for and brought to justice," DEA Special Agent in Charge James Hunt said. "Simply put, heroin is death and DEA will continue to focus our resources on identifying and arresting drug trafficking organizations that are pushing lethal combinations of heroin and fentanyl onto our streets and into addicts’ hands.”

During the course of the investigation of the fatal and near-fatal overdoses on Long Island, investigators learned that Headley, an active member of the Bloods street gang with a prior felony drug conviction, sold a heroin-fentanyl blend or a pure fentanyl dose to heroin users for $10 a bag, or at a discounted rate to his repeat customers of $80 for ten doses, Spota said.

The five other people indicted for on a charge of operating as a major trafficker were:

• Keidy Rodriguez Nunez aka Anthony Nunez, 34, of Ozone Park (authorities say he operated a heroin mill in Queens)
• Edward Gonzalez, 26, of the Bronx (authorities say he operated a heroin mill in Queens)
• Melquisedec Puello, 29, of Middle Village
• Carlos Torres, 34, of Wyandanch
• Guillermo Torres, 26, of Massapequa