Wethersfield Man Sentenced In Overdose Death In Meriden: Feds

MERIDEN, CT — A Wethersfield man has been sentenced to more than eight years in prison in connection with the overdose death of a 27-year-old woman in Meriden, according to officials.

Jimmy Lassus, 40, was sentenced Monday in federal court in Bridgeport to 100 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, Acting U.S. Attorney for Connecticut Marc H. Silverman announced.

According to court documents and statements made in court, in the early morning of Oct. 6, 2023, Meriden Police responded to a residence on a report of a suspected overdose and found a 27-year-old woman unresponsive in a bedroom. She was taken to the hospital where she was pronounced dead.

“The investigation revealed that for several months before the victim’s death, the victim engaged in numerous drug-related text message conversations with Lassus,” officials wrote in a news released. “The text messages revealed that Lassus supplied the victim with oxycodone, and that he supplied her with fentanyl that she ingested in the hours before she died. The victim stated in text messages and in a journal entry that it was her first time using fentanyl.”

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined the victim’s death to be caused by “acute intoxication due to the combined effects of fentanyl, benzodiazepines, xylazine, and oxycodone,” according to officials.

Lassus has been detained since his arrest on April 11. He pleaded guilty in September to distribution of fentanyl and oxycodone.