FARMINGTON — A local man pleaded guilty Monday to selling cocaine and anti-anxiety medication from his downtown apartment in January.
Judge Susan Oram sentenced Omer Havtan, 21, to serve one year of a six-year sentence, followed by three years of probation on the cocaine charge, and a one-year sentence on the charge of selling Xanax pills. The sentences will be served at the same time.
Havtan also agreed to forfeit $4,629 and to reimburse $1,080 to the Farmington Police Department for testing the drugs.
Havtan pleaded guilty in Franklin County Superior Court to felony charges of aggravated trafficking of Xanax and unlawful trafficking of cocaine. The first charge is aggravated because his Broadway apartment was within 1,000 feet of Meetinghouse Park, which is a drug-free zone.
A total of $1,000 in fines was imposed.
Two other drug charges and a violation of condition of release charge were dismissed in an agreement between Assistant Attorney General David Fisher and defense attorney Walter Hanstein and Havtan, Deputy District Attorney James Andrews told the court.
If the case had gone to trial, Farmington police Sgt. Edward Hastings IV would have testified that the department received information in late 2017 and early 2018 of suspected drug sales from an apartment at 164 Broadway, Andrews said.
Farmington police investigated and searched the apartment Jan. 11. Hastings would have testified that prepackaged cocaine and LSD, Xanax pills, packaging materials and scales were discovered. Police would also have testified they found 15 grams of cocaine and 119 Xanax pills in his room in the apartment, Andrews said.
Officer Darin Gilbert would have testified that Havtan had more than $1,000 in his pocket, Andrews said, and money was also found in a safe.
There was also evidence on cellphones consistent with drug trafficking. Surveillance in the apartment would have shown Havtan weighing and selling drugs, Andrews said.
Hanstein said Havtan has turned his life around since his arrest in January, and he has a great family who supports him.
The sentence is less severe than might be generally imposed, Oram said, because Havtan has no criminal record and has made changes in his life.
“I wish you good luck,” Orman told Havtan.
The cocaine charge carried a possible 10 years in prison while the Xanax charge carried a possible five-year sentence.
Jonathan Toothaker, 23, of Farmington, who was Havtan’s roommate at the time of the arrest, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit trafficking in cocaine in May. Charges of aggravated trafficking and violation condition of release were dismissed in a plea negotiation. He was sentenced to two years, which was all suspended, and two years of probation, according to court records.
dperry@sunmediagroup.net
Omer Havtan (Franklin County Detention Center)
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