Stamford Man Sentenced to More Than 26 Years in Prison for Drug Trafficking, Witness Retaliation, Robbery

Nora R. Dannehy, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that ISNI GJURAJ, also known as “Ease,” 28, of Stamford, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Mark R. Kravitz in New Haven to 320 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for his leadership of a Fairfield County narcotics trafficking operation. On November 14, 2008, GJURAJ pleaded guilty to one count of retaliating against a witness, one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine base (“crack cocaine”), and one count of Hobbs Act Robbery.

According to documents filed with the Court and statements made in court, from January 2007 to February 2008, GJURAJ headed a large-scale, narcotics trafficking conspiracy in Southwestern Connecticut. During the course of the conspiracy, GJURAJ was responsible for selling in excess of 56 kilograms of crack cocaine. GJURAJ also has admitted that he paid someone to murder another individual in retaliation for the individual’s providing information about a narcotics trafficking offense to a law enforcement officer, and also procured a firearm for use in the offense. On December 24, 2007, the intended victim was shot six times and sustained serious bodily injury.

Also, on February 16, 2005, GJURAJ and another individual traveled in a rented car from New York to a location in New Jersey and robbed a 60-year-old victim of her jewelry at gunpoint. Following the robbery, GJURAJ and the other individual drove to the area of 48th Street and 5th Avenue, in New York, New York, more commonly known as “The Diamond District,” in an effort to dispose of the jewelry taken during the robbery.

On January 17, 2008, one of the organization’s cars was seized by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. A subsequent search of a secret compartment within the center console of the vehicle revealed 851.8 grams of crack cocaine, 581.6 grams of cocaine, two scales used for weighing narcotics, a fully loaded handgun and approximately $3000 cash. On January 18, 2008, the Federal Bureau of Investigation also seized 300 grams of crack cocaine that GJURAJ had secreted in a stone wall at a location in Stamford.

On February 14, 2008, a federal grand jury returned a 30-count Indictment charging GJURAJ and 21 other individuals with various federal drug trafficking, firearm and witness tampering offenses related to the distribution of cocaine and crack cocaine in Southwestern Connecticut.

In addition to his term of imprisonment, GJURAJ has forfeited to the Government approximately $3700 in cash and three vehicles, all of which were outfitted with secret compartments to secrete narcotics and firearms.

GJURAJ has been detained since his arrest on January 31, 2008.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Safe Streets Task Force, which is composed of members of federal and local law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation Division, and the Norwalk, Bridgeport, Trumbull, Fairfield and Stamford Police Departments. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tracy Lee Dayton of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force.

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