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Bridgeport resident Jermel Bates, also known as “Mel Kitty” and “Kitty,” was indicted by a grand jury on Thursday, March 28, said Vanessa Roberts Avery, US Attorney for the District of Connecticut.
As alleged in the indictment, court documents, and statements made in court, in the early morning hours of Friday, June 25, 2023, Bates crashed his vehicle into a parked car in Bridgeport and fled the scene on foot.
Law enforcement conducted an inventory search of Bates’ vehicle and found plastic bags containing approximately 550 blue/green fentanyl pills stamped “M/30,” more than 500 wax paper folds containing heroin, fentanyl, and cocaine, and approximately 78 grams of crack cocaine, court documents show.
Bates was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on Tuesday, March 19. It is further alleged that, in conjunction with his arrest, investigators searched his person and his Newfield Avenue apartment and found plastic bags with thousands of blue-green fentanyl pills, hundreds of wax paper sleeves containing fentanyl, and a bag containing crack cocaine.
The indictment charges Bates with two counts of possession with intent to distribute controlled substances. If convicted, based on the type and quantities of controlled substances identified in each count of the indictment, Bates faces a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a maximum term of imprisonment of 40 years, on each count.
Bates has been detained since his arrest.
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