The drug dealer who sold actor Michael K. Williams fentanyl-laced heroin was sentenced Friday to 10 years in prison.
Irving Cartagena, 40, was one of four men who were charged and pled guilty to running a drug trafficking operation out of an apartment in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Cartagena sold the drugs to Williams outside of the apartment on Sept .5, 2021. He was found dead the following day in his Brooklyn penthouse and it was ruled an accidental overdose. The deal was captured by nearby security cameras.
US attorneys alleged Cartagena and his conspirators continued to deal the fentanyl-laced drugs outside the apartment after the actor’s death. Cartagena fled to Puerto Rico and was arrested there in February of 2022.
During his sentencing, Cartagena communicated through a Spanish interpreter and apologized for his actions in Williams’s death. “I am very sorry for my actions,” Cartagena said in his statement. “When we sold the drugs, we never intended for anyone to lose their life.”
During the sentencing, Judge Ronnie Abrams said that Cartagena was aware that the heroin he sold was laced, while Williams was unaware. “I’m hopeful that with treatment, … it will help you move forward on a more productive and law-abiding path,” she added.
Abrams said the 10-year sentencing is “sufficient but not greater than necessary.” Last month one of Cartagena’s conspirators in the drug operation, Carlos Macci, was sentenced to 30 months in prison. The other two men await hearings for their sentencing next month.