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Vito Frabizio, age 33, of Deer Park, was sentenced to 11 years in prison in Suffolk County Court Friday, Nov. 18, after pleading guilty to three counts of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance.
Prosecutors said cell phone records showed that Frabizio had sold the man fentanyl and heroin fentanyl on March 8, just one day before the man died.
The man was discovered by his girlfriend on his bed, while attending a virtual Narcotics Anonymous meeting via Zoom, according to prosecutors.
At the scene, Suffolk County Police also found three hypodermic needles and the phone police say he had used to arrange the drug transaction.
On the same day the West Babylon man died, Frabizio arranged to meet an undercover Suffolk County Police officer at a motel in Sayville, where he sold ⅛ of an ounce of fentanyl and more than ⅛ of an ounce of cocaine to the officer, according to prosecutors.
After obtaining a search warrant for his motel room, police reportedly found over ½ an ounce of fentanyl, cocaine, two digital scales, and $3,889 in cash.
Following his arraignment in March 2022, Frabizio was let go on supervised release as the charges were not bail eligible under New York State law since investigators were still awaiting toxicology results in the death of the West Babylon man.
Prosecutors said after being released, Frabizio again contacted an undercover narcotics officer and arranged to sell fentanyl and cocaine.
He was rearrested on March 25 on the new felony charges.
In a statement following Friday’s sentencing, Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney criticized the bail reform legislation, saying he is prohibited from seeking bail for drug dealers until after a death occurs.
“It is unfortunate that this defendant was able to continue selling dangerous drugs following his release from a drug arrest,” Tierney said.
“Not only did this defendant sell a fatal dose of drugs to a client who was desperately attempting to escape his own addiction, but this defendant continued to engage in his drug trade even after causing that death, and after having been placed on supervised release by the arraigning court,” he continued.
“While sentencing will take the defendant off the streets, it will not bring the victim back.”
In September 2022, Frabizio pleaded guilty to three counts of third-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance and one count of second-degree criminally using drug paraphernalia.
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