An Ansonia man connected to a group of “notorious” Valley drug dealers was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison Thursday because police found two boxes of bullets in his garage.
Carl Cheeseboro’s long criminal record — he’s a seven-time convicted felon — and the fact the ammunition was manufactured in another state and brought to Connecticut made the possession of the bullets a federal offense.
Cheeseboro also has four felonies pending in Superior Court in Derby after he was arrested April 12 in Seymour. Cops, who had just raided a house in connection to an ongoing investigation, said they found a loaded Glock pistol in Cheeseboro’s vehicle.
Drugs And Guns
Cheeseboro’s arrest in April was part of a Valley-wide crackdown on a group of men and women who were allegedly running drugs and guns. The same group is thought to have ties to two shootings in Derby.
Two weeks after Seymour charged him with the gun violation, police obtained a warrant to search his Ansonia residence.
That’s where cops found two boxes of ammunition — 44 bullets in all — in a detached garage.
In a written statement arguing for a lesser sentence, Cheeseboro’s defense lawyer Ronald B. Resetarits suggests that police may have obtained that search warrant in an effort to build a stronger case against Cheeseboro’s associates in the drug-and-gun-trade.
“He appears, however, to be viewed as guilty by association to several of his nephews who are notorious drug dealers (and who may have committed acts of violence) in Ansonia,” Resetarits’ memo reads.
“In fact, his arrest appears to be motivated, in part, to provide an incentive to Mr. Cheeseboro to cooperate against one or more of his nephews.”
Associates
There is nothing to indicate in court documents who the nephews might be.
However, one of the men arrested along with Cheeseboro included Keyshon Zimmerman, a man well-known to Valley police departments.
The 25-year-old former Ansonia resident was sentenced in May to four years in prison for stealing a gun. Derby police have said they believe Zimmerman has connections to a fatal shooting on Hawthorne Avenue in Derby in 2009.
In addition, police believe an ambush-style shooting on Chapel Street in Derby in 2009 was motivated by Zimmerman’s associates who were out for revenge after Zimmerman was shot in the face in New Haven.
While acknowledging Cheeseboro is related by blood to some of the suspects who were committing crimes in the Valley, Cheeseboro wasn’t directly involved, his defense lawyer said.
“While it is true that Mr. Cheeseboro has allowed one or more nephews to store items in the detached garage, and has run errands for one or more nephews, Mr. Cheeseboro was not involved in any drug distribution activities,” Resetarits’ memo reads.
Hard Times, Then Crime
Cheeseboro was born in Ansonia and raised on Olson Drive.
He grew up with a single mom. There wasn’t enough money to feed the family, so Cheeseboro turned to the streets to sell drugs, according to court documents.
He was a father by 16. His role models were Ansonia drug dealers.
“The older guys in my hood (showed) me how to get money, and even though I was able to help my mother with food and bills, she did not condone my selling drugs,” Cheeseboro said in a hand-written letter to United States District Judge Janet C. Hall.
At the same time, Cheeseboro started using drugs himself. He eventually developed a heavy crack addiction, according to the sentencing memo filed by his lawyer.
He was particularly nasty in his 20s, when he started piling on the felony crimes and convictions. His record includes conviction for selling drugs and robbery.
But, in the last four years, Cheeseboro began dating a Valley woman who had become addicted to pain pills after spinal surgery. Cheeseboro was her rock, according to a letter submitted to court by the woman. He helped keep her off drugs — even though he was still using.
“ … I’m (truly) sorry for wasting your honor’s time and the tax payers’ money on something I should have never been (involved) with at my age,” Cheeseboro wrote to the judge.
His lawyer argued for 36 months in prison.
Career Criminal
However, assistant U.S. attorney Marc H. Silverman pointed out that federal sentencing guidelines called for prison time of between 51 to 63 months.
He indicated Cheeseboro had been lucky in the state court system by consistently avoiding long jail sentences.
“But rather than take advantage of the opportunities afforded by the suspended sentences or learn from the service of short terms of imprisonment, the defendant has consistently returned to a life of crime,” Silverman said.
Silverman also said some of Cheeseboro’s past crimes were serious. His conviction for robbery happened after he pulled a knife and threatened to kill a woman if her boyfriend didn’t pay back money owed to him.
While Cheeseboro’s federal crime was possessing the two boxes of bullets, Silverman pointed out that Cheeseboro has a gun case pending in state court.
Cheeseboro told Seymour police the gun he had in his car when they arrested him had been in his possession for two years, Silverman said. That alone is a serious offense, because felons aren’t supposed to have weapons, Silverman said.
“This criminal history – reflecting the history and characteristics of the defendant, the need to afford adequate deterrence to criminal conduct, and the need to protect the public from further crimes of the defendant – supports a sentence within the guidelines range of 51 – 63 months of imprisonment,” Silverman said.
Cheeseboro is scheduled to be sentenced on the Seymour gun charge today (Friday, June 17) in Superior Court in Derby.
The case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Ansonia, Derby, Seymour and Shelton police departments.
The federal prosecutor’s sentencing memo is posted below:
