By Tiffany Williams –
HARTFORD, Conn. — Jelson Perez, also known as “Spank,” 42, of Norwalk, was sentenced Wednesday, July 23, 2025, to five years in federal prison for his role in a large-scale narcotics trafficking operation in the Norwalk area.
U.S. District Judge Vernon D. Oliver handed down the 60-month sentence in Hartford federal court, which also includes four years of supervised release following incarceration.
According to court records and statements made during proceedings, Perez was part of a drug trafficking organization that distributed significant quantities of fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine in and around Norwalk. The Drug Enforcement Administration’s Bridgeport High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) Task Force and the Norwalk Police Department launched the investigation in May 2023.
Through court-authorized wiretaps and controlled drug purchases, investigators uncovered that the organization coordinated shipments of kilogram quantities of cocaine from Texas and Ohio, as well as fentanyl and heroin from New York City. Perez was identified as a key player in the network, involved in distributing narcotics and brokering the purchase of a firearm for another member of the operation.
Perez and several co-conspirators were arrested on April 29, 2024. Authorities executing federal search warrants seized approximately 15,000 dose bags of suspected fentanyl, 350 grams of raw heroin, cocaine, crack cocaine, a 9mm handgun with ammunition, and a 2021 Ford F-150.
Perez has remained in custody since his arrest. He pleaded guilty on April 30, 2025, to conspiracy to distribute and to possess with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and quantities of heroin and cocaine.