HOLYOKE — Eight years after he was first arrested, a Chicopee businessman who owned a Holyoke auto shop was sentenced this week in a cocaine and heroin conspiracy case.

U.S. District Court Judge Mark G. Mastroianni on Wednesday sentenced Jamil Roman, 44, to seven months in prison and three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty in November to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of cocaine. Roman was formerly the owner and operator of TWC Auto Body.

In a statement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office District of Massachusetts said that between January and March of 2014, Roman acted as a “trusted advisor” to Javier Gonzalez, who prosecutors described as “a large-scale drug dealer responsible for distributing vast amounts of drugs in Western Massachusetts.” In October, Gonzalez was sentenced to 30 months in prison for his role in the scheme.

“Roman, who owned TWC Auto Body in Holyoke, conspired with Gonzalez to collect a debt owed for four kilograms of cocaine, which was part of a larger load that Gonzalez obtained from a Mexican supply source,” prosecutors said. “Specifically, Roman advised others on how to go about collecting drug debts and, in doing so, recalled his past experiences in selling large amounts of drugs.”

Those efforts included preparing a hidden compartment in the carrier of a tractor trailer, which Gonzalez drove to Texas to obtain heroin and cocaine to distribute in western Massachusetts, prosecutors said.

“Approximately $1.17 million in cash was seized from the trailer’s hidden compartment, as well as 14 kilograms of heroin and 42 kilograms of cocaine awaiting pickup by Gonzalez in Texas,” the statement said. “In addition, more than $430,000 in drug proceeds was seized from Roman’s residence.”

The U.S. attorney’s office had recommended that Roman be sentenced to 46 months in prison and five years of supervised release.

Roman’s sentence also includes a three-month period of home confinement as part of his supervised release after seven months.

Dusty Christensen can be reached at dchristensen@gazettenet.com.]]>