‘HEARTFELT APOLOGY’

Drug Dealer Linked to Michael K. Williams’ Death Gets Five Years

Luis Cruz “accepted responsibility and provided a genuine, heartfelt apology,” his lawyer said.

The third of four drug-dealing crew members linked to the death of actor Michael K. Williams was sentenced to five years behind bars Tuesday in New York City. The Associated Press reports Luis Cruz, who pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of narcotics conspiracy in April, was handed the sentence by a federal judge. His lawyer, Deborah Colson, told the outlet that Cruz “accepted responsibility and provided a genuine, heartfelt apology,” but declined to comment any further. Williams overdosed at his Brooklyn penthouse in Sept. 2021, just hours after he purchased heroin from another member within the crew, Irvin Cartagena, who was sentenced to 10 years in prison in August. Despite Williams’ death, the crew continued to sell the the fentanyl-laced heroin. “It was a terrible mistake in judgment,” Cruz wrote before his sentencing in a letter to the judge, adding that he was addicted to drugs and dealt to support his habit.