A Pittsburgh man was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison on his conviction of violating federal narcotics laws.
U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said Norman Blackwell, 43, conspired with others to distribute more than 100 grams of heroin from November 2015 to January 2016. Blackwell also received eight years of supervised release.
The case grew out of a federally administered Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force investigation that resulted in several federal indictments in August 2016.
The indictments were the result of an investigation which utilized wiretaps and other investigative techniques that established the existence of a several overlapping and interrelated drug distribution networks.
They involved the federal court jurisdictions of western Pennsylvania, northern Ohio, eastern Michigan and the Virgin Islands.
The task force is headed by the FBI. It is comprised of members drawn from Pittsburgh, Wilkinsburg and Allegheny County police and the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office.
