Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Crime

Man Gets 22 Years in Prison For Death of Colin Kroll, Co-Founder of ‘HQ Trivia’ and ‘Vine’


Colin Kroll in 2014 / Photo via Getty Images

NEW YORK CITY – Ariel Tavarez, a/k/a “A,” a/k/a “Mike,” was sentenced to 22 years in prison in connection with his conspiring to distribute heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, and a fentanyl analogue, and to distributing narcotics that caused the 2018 death of Colin Kroll, the co-founder of the video hosting service Vine and the trivia game application HQ Trivia.

According to the allegations in the Indictment, and statements made in Court:

Tavarez was the leader of a drug trafficking organization (the “DTO”) that engaged in a drug delivery service, which identified itself as “Mike’s Candyshop.” The DTO delivered heroin and cocaine (sometimes laced with fentanyl and a fentanyl analogue) on demand to customers in New York City, and distributed numerous kilograms of heroin and cocaine throughout the course of the conspiracy. Mike’s Candyshop generally operated seven days per week, from approximately 6:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m., with the exception of major holidays such as Thanksgiving, New Year’s Eve, and Labor Day.

Customers of the DTO placed delivery orders via text message to a centralized phone number (the “Candyshop Number”). The operator of the Candyshop Number was usually Tavarez. Using the Candyshop Number, Tavarez accepted customer orders and subsequently arranged for a courier working for the DTO to deliver the narcotics to the customer, usually within hours of the customer texting his or her order to the Candyshop Number. Certain of the DTO members, including Christian Baez, Luis Meson, a/k/a “Sito,” Gregoris Martinez, a/k/a “Greg,” Kevin Grullon, a/k/a “Kev,” a/k/a “JB,” and Jeffrey Urena, a/k/a “Jeff,” a/k/a “Jay,” served as couriers for the DTO, and regularly delivered and sold narcotics to the DTO’s customers in hand-to-hand drug transactions coordinated through the Candyshop Number.

The DTO stored heroin, cocaine, a fentanyl analogue, and cash from drug sales in various stash locations maintained by the DTO, including in Brooklyn, New York. In an effort to avoid law enforcement detection, the DTO sold only to customers who had been referred by existing customers, periodically changed the Candyshop Number, used coded language to discuss narcotics, and delivered narcotics directly to customers at locations specified by the customer. As a means of marketing its cocaine, and to ensure that the DTO’s customers knew the cocaine provided by the couriers belonged to the DTO, the DTO sold its cocaine in vials sealed with different colored tops.

Advertisement

Tavarez, the leader of the DTO, used threats of violence, including with firearms, against other members of the DTO to maintain order and eliminate competition from within the organization.

Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

On or about December 16, 2018, Colin Kroll, a customer of the DTO, died of a drug overdose in New York, New York. The narcotics that caused Kroll’s death – cocaine, heroin, fentanyl, and a fentanyl analogue – were purchased from Mike’s Candyshop on the evening of December 14, 2018.

Tavarez, 41, previously pled guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, and a fentanyl analogue, the use of which resulted in the death of Colin Kroll on or about December 16, 2018.

Baez, Meson, Martinez, Grullon, and Urena each previously entered a plea of guilty to participating in the Mike’s Candyshop narcotics trafficking conspiracy. Martinez was sentenced on June 29, 2021, to 72 months in prison; Meson was sentenced on September 7, 2021, to 108 months in prison; Urena was sentenced on October 6, 2021, to 40 months in prison; and Grullon was sentenced on October 13, 2021, to 60 months in prison. Baez has not yet been sentenced.

Mr. Williams praised the outstanding investigative work of Homeland Security Investigations, the DEA New York Division, the New York City Police Department, and the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.

Facebook Comments




News by Breaking911

Loading

Advertisement
Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.
Click to comment
Advertisement
Advertisement

You May Also Like

Crime

Law&Crime NetworkMon, January 1, 2024 10:30pmURL:Embed: In 2024, “Doomsday cult” prophet Chad Daybell is scheduled to go to trial — Idaho Murders suspect Bryan...

Crime

WASHINGTON (FTC / News Release) – The Federal Trade Commission and 17 state attorneys general today sued Amazon.com, Inc. alleging that the online retail...

Crime

PHOTO CREDIT: JABIN BOTSFORD/THE WASHINGTON POST/GETTY IMAGES Donald Trump’s legal team is attempting to have the federal election subversion case in...

Crime

Department of Defense / News Release: Today, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced a new security assistance package to support Ukraine’s...

Crime

President Biden Holds a Joint Press Conference with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia Facebook Comments Advertisement. Scroll to continue...

Crime

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA – A search warrant executed last week in Morgantown led to the recovery of a large batch of “Rainbow Fentanyl,” a...

Crime

Navarrete could face a mandatory minimum sentence of 49 years in prison if convicted of all charges, according to prosecutors An Arizona state senator...

Crime

Law&Crime NetworkFri, September 8, 2023 10:30pmURL:Embed: YouTube mom Ruby Franke and her business partner, Jodi Hildebrandt, were arrested last week after Franke’s 12-year-old son...

Covid-19

 Corrine Lund is a nurse who has absolutely had enough of the lies. Lund came forward on “The Stew Peters Show” to reveal what...

Crime

President Biden Delivers Remarks on Maui and Hurricane Idalia Response Facebook Comments Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading. Previous...

Missing

The massive search for Gabby Petito after the Florida woman vanished in September and was later found dead in a Wyoming national park has...

Crime

AFP via Getty Images WASHINGTON – During a Wednesday press conference, a cheat sheet used by President Joe Biden was revealed,...

Advertisement