Metro

Drug couriers busted after three fatal NYC ODs in one day from fentanyl-laced cocaine

A trio of drug dealers who operated a delivery service in Manhattan was arrested Tuesday for peddling fentanyl-laced drugs that caused three fatal overdoses in a single day last year, federal authorities said. 

Suspects Billy Ortega, Kaylen Rainey and William Drayton were each charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine, the feds said.

Ortega and Rainey were additionally charged with causing the deaths of three victims, according to a criminal complaint unsealed in Manhattan federal court Tuesday.

According to the complaint, Ortega, 35, acted as a dispatcher for the operation March 17, 2021, sending Rainey to make deals at three different Manhattan addresses that day. 

Three customers – Julia Ghahramani, Ross Mtangi and Amanda Scher – died of overdoses after ingesting the fentanyl-laced cocaine sold to them that day, according to the feds. 

Investigators recovered text messages between the customers and the drug dispatcher that revealed the dealers were touting a “new batch” of product they had to offer, according to the complaint. 

“Question first…is it the same as it was Sunday? Because that was not good lol, had to get rid of it,” Scher texted the number for the delivery service while setting up a buy, according to the court papers. 

Kaylen Rainey was captured on surveillance footage at the three addresses before the fatalities occurred. Southern District of New York

Ortega allegedly texted her back, “No new … Batch.”

Scher then replied after she apparently tried the cocaine, “Def better.” 

Ortega wrote back, “Hey try not to do too much because it’s really strong. Hey boss lady you heard Lol,” according to the feds.

Scher never responded. 

Records show the phone associated with the delivery service made three FaceTime calls to Scher soon after the text message exchange, but they were not answered, according to the complaint. 

William Drayton is accused of acting as a dispatcher for the cocaine operation but is not believed to be involved in the three deaths. Southern District of New York

Ghahramani also exchanged a series of text messages with the same number before her death, the feds allege. 

“Can they come upstairs pls Instead of me going to car,” she wrote. 

Ortega allegedly wrote back, “Hey yeah he’s going up 10min.”

She replied, “Awesome.”

Ortega responded, “Hey. Hey you there.”

Phone records show the number of the delivery service then tried to call her twice that night and five times the next morning, but none of the calls were answered, according to the complaint. 

Julia Ghahramani, Ross Mtangi and Amanda Scher all died from overdoses from fentanyl-laced cocaine. Getty Images

The feds tracked the phone number that exchanged the text messages and made the calls and linked it to an iCloud account they believe belongs to Ortega. 

Rainey, the 30-year-old alleged drug courier for the three fatal deals, was captured on surveillance video at the addresses before the transactions, according to the complaint. 

Drayton, 30, is not believed to have participated in the three fatal deals but allegedly acted as a courier for the service on other occasions. 

The three suspects were awaiting arraignment in Manhattan federal court. Attorney information for them was not immediately available.