Mohegan Sun Drug Dealer Sentenced to Eight Years

A case that began in May 2021 has officially come to a close as a drug dealer who sold a 22-year-old male cocaine laced with fentanyl that resulted in the user overdosing on the casino floor has been sentenced to jail. 

This comes after a Connecticut man was found guilty of a robbery also at Mohegan Sun. 

The Drug Dealer

The dealer who’s been convicted and sentenced in 44-year-old Jerrard Santiago of New Haven, Connecticut. 

This past Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer handed down the sentence of eight years. The sentencing was conducted at a New Haven federal court. Santiago will also be ordered to three years of supervised release after his stint in prison.

As mentioned, the drug deal took place in May 2021 in one of the bathrooms at Mohegan Sun. Later, 22-year-old Ethan Bherani overdosed on the floor and died 11 days later.

An investigation was launched, and nearly two years later, on February 3, 2023, undercover police purchased fentanyl-laced heroin from Santiago. They later also purchased fentanyl-laced cocaine from him. 

He was arrested a month later, and on January 29, 2024, he pleaded guilty to multiple counts of possession with intent to distribute and distribution of a controlled substance. 

In April, Judge Meyer ruled Santiago knowingly distributed the drugs that led to the overdose. 

Father Blames Casino

Following his son’s death, the father of Bherwani. Kamal Bherwani blamed the casino. 

In an interview with the New York Post earlier this year, he believes his son would’ve survived if casino officials responded quicker.

Bherwani was at Mohegan Sun celebrating graduating from college before he used the drugs and ultimately fell out of a chair at a blackjack table.

While he was lying on the floor, it’s alleged that no one intervened to help Bherwani. It’s alleged that it took about 4.5 minutes for someone to check on him, and EMTs arrived about 11 minutes after he fell out of the chair, per the New York Post. 

CPR was conducted but unsuccessful. 

Declared Brain Dead

After he was unable to be revived, he was rushed to a hospital and declared brain dead. He died more than a week later. 

It was confirmed that Bherwani consumed multiple substances, including marijuana, alcohol, fentanyl, and cocaine, that evening. 

There were also reports that fellow casino-goers attempted to help Bherwani, but Mohegan Sun employees told them to leave him alone. 

Kamal filed a lawsuit, but it was later dismissed.