Press Release

DA KATZ SECURES INDICTMENT OF ALLEGED DRUG DEALER FOR SELLING DEADLY NARCOTICS IN SOUTHEAST QUEENS

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz, joined by New York City Police Commissioner Keechant L. Sewell, announced today that Emendjer Mathurin has been indicted by a Queens County grand jury and arraigned in Supreme Court on charges of criminal sale of a controlled substance for allegedly supplying a large amount of narcotics, including cocaine and fentanyl, to an undercover officer between February and July.

District Attorney Katz said: “Deadly narcotics, especially lethal fentanyl, have caused death and destruction all across our nation. While Queens County continues to experience an uptick in fatal overdoses, my Office is fighting back by relentlessly pursuing those who sell poison in our communities. Following an investigation conducted by my Major Economic Crimes Bureau and the New York City Police Department, this defendant has been apprehended and faces justice in our courts.”

Police Commissioner Sewell said: “Today’s indictment illustrates that the work of the NYPD, with its law enforcement partners, is continuing every day to rid our city of illegal narcotics and to ensure that those who profit from the drug trade face real consequences. Fentanyl is deadly, period. It has taken too many lives, and we will never waver in our fight to make us all safer by removing it and other illegal drugs from our streets. I want to thank and commend our brave NYPD officers and the Office of the Queens County District Attorney for their exceptional work in this case.”

Mathurin, 31, of 112th Avenue in Queens Village, Queens, was arraigned today before Queens Supreme Court Judge Toni Cimino on a 13-count indictment charging him with criminal sale of a controlled substance in the first, second, and third degrees. Judge Cimino ordered the defendant to return to Court on November 14, 2022. If convicted, Mathurin faces up to 30 years in prison.
Utilizing surveillance and undercover buys, the District Attorney’s Major Economic Crimes Bureau along with the NYPD’s Queens South Violent Crime Squad conducted a lengthy investigation leading to the arrest of the defendant.

District Attorney Katz said the investigation began by looking into the activities of the defendant as an alleged drug supplier. An undercover detective posing as a “buyer” initially met with Mathurin on February 26, at which time the defendant allegedly sold to the undercover detective 123 Oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl.

According to the charges, a total of 13 cash transactions took place between February 26 and July 14, during which Mathurin sold 1,752 Oxycodone pills and more than 10 ounces of cocaine.
Upon laboratory testing of the seized narcotics, law enforcement officials discovered that each of the pills contained fentanyl.

District Attorney Katz said that there have been 271 suspected fatal overdose cases across Queens County so far in 2022, an estimated 54% increase from the same time last year. An overwhelming majority of these deaths, approximately 77%, have been attributed to fentanyl.

The joint investigation was supervised by NYPD Sergeant Matthew Lewis, under the direction of NYPD Captain Robert D’Andrea, and under the overall supervision of NYPD Chief of Detectives James W. Essig.

Assistant District Attorney Sean Murphy of the District Attorney’s Major Economic Crimes Bureau is prosecuting the case under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Mary Lowenburg, Bureau Chief, Assistant District Attorney Catherine Kane, Senior Deputy Bureau Chief, Assistant District Attorney Jonathan Scharf, Deputy Bureau Chief, Assistant District Attorney Kieran Linehan, Supervisor, and under the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney of Investigations Gerard Brave.

**Criminal complaints and indictments are accusations. A defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.