United States Drug Enforcement Administration

NEW HAVEN, Conn. - Michael J. Ferguson, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration for New England and Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, today announced that Thomas Carr, also known as “Tommy Love,” 27, of New Haven, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in Hartford to 48 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing crack cocaine.  Carr also was ordered to perform 100 hours of community service.

Carr is one of more than 100 individuals charged as a result of “Operation Bloodline,” a joint law enforcement investigation targeting narcotics trafficking and gang violence in the Dwight-Kensington and Fair Haven sections of New Haven.  Led by the DEA New Haven Task Force and the New Haven and Hamden Police Departments, the year-long investigation included the use of court-authorized wiretaps on numerous telephones, extensive physical surveillance, controlled purchases of narcotics, execution of search warrants, and seizures of narcotics and firearms.

According to court documents and statements made in court, the investigation revealed that James Bowman, also known as “Jimmy-Jam,” operated a large-scale cocaine and crack cocaine trafficking operation in the greater New Haven area.  Carr ran Bowman’s drug-selling location in the Fair Haven section of New Haven.

Carr was arrested on May 17, 2012.  On January 4, 2013, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 280 grams or more of cocaine (“crack cocaine”).  Carr has been detained since April 17, 2014, when his bond was revoked.

Bowman pleaded guilty and awaits sentencing. This matter has been investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New Haven Task Force, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the New Haven, Hamden, West Haven, North Haven, Branford, Ansonia and Meriden Police Departments.  The United States Marshals Service, the Connecticut State Police, the Connecticut Department of Correction, Parole and Community Services and the Milford, Hartford, New Britain, North Branford and Stratford Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys S. Dave Vatti and Marc Silverman.