WILTON — A local man was sentenced Monday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Portland to nine years in prison for conspiring to distribute fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is 80 to 100 times stronger than morphine.
Dennis Ayala, 55, pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of the drug.
His conditions of release include four years of supervised release and being subject to random search and testing.
Ayala and his daughter, Andrea Hoffman, 35, also of Wilton, were arrested in May 2018.
According to an arrest affidavit by Maine State Police Trooper Justin Huntley, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration received information that Ayala was arranging the purchase of fentanyl in Massachusetts to bring to Maine.
The DEA coordinated a traffic stop of an acquaintance of Ayala’s on Interstate 95 in Maine, which led to the discovery and seizure of 196.9 grams of fentanyl in the vehicle. Police learned that Ayala intended to distribute a portion of that fentanyl, according to U.S. District Court documents.
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