A Mohegan Lake drug trafficker who admitted selling the fentanyl that killed a Westchester man is headed to federal prison for nearly a quarter-century. Perry Freeman, 40, was sentenced Tuesday to 292 months — 24 years and four months — after a fatal 2021 sale, a crack-cocaine conspiracy, and illegal ammunition possession.
The sentence was announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, which said Freeman pleaded guilty on February 11 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew E. Krause and was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Karas. In addition to prison, Freeman received five years of supervised release, according to the Southern District of New York.
How The Mohegan Lake Death Unfolded
On November 10, 2021, Freeman sold fentanyl to a 37-year-old man, prosecutors said. Police then found a Ford Focus burning in a Mohegan Lake parking lot, with the victim in the driver’s seat and his foot pressing the accelerator while the car was in park; investigators concluded the engine overheated after running that way for an extended period, according to the earlier federal charging account.
The Westchester County Medical Examiner’s Office found lethal levels of fentanyl and norfentanyl in the man’s blood and listed the cause of death as acute fentanyl intoxication and accident. Earlier local coverage identified the victim as Brian Cobb and detailed the fatal fire, as reported by Yonkers Times.
A Repeat Offender With A Federal Sentence
Federal prosecutors described Freeman as a recidivist, citing felony narcotics convictions from 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2022. They also said he possessed five shotgun shells despite being barred from possessing ammunition and had conspired for years to distribute crack cocaine, details included in the sentencing release.
U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald said Freeman sold fentanyl to a victim who died shortly afterward and that the office would keep pursuing people who distribute it. The sentence comes as federal prosecutors continue bringing death-resulting fentanyl cases across the Hudson Valley, including the June case of a Bronx man accused of causing three fatal overdoses in Port Chester and Stamford, according to Hoodline’s regional report.
