SUFFOLK COUNTY (WABC) — A man on Long Island was indicted on Thursday on charges of dealing drugs that could kill 2 million people.
Phillip Gonzales was indicted on 25 counts and is accused of operating as a major drug trafficker in Suffolk County.
The Suffolk County District Attorney says they took a cache of weapons and illegal drugs, including cocaine and other drugs.
The investigation started with a drug-related death last month in East Patchogue.
Then an undercover investigation was launched so detectives could ‘buy and bust,’ which led to Gonzales’ arrest.
“The amount of drugs we seized in this case would be capable of causing the overdoses of 2.2 million people,” DA Raymond Tierney said.
The 42-year-old had about 7 kilograms of controlled substances and two loaded guns when he was arrested in February, according to the District Attorney’s office.
Suffolk Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina says his investigators led to Gonzales after two brothers overdosed in their East Patchogue home, and one of those young men died.
“When we get one of these overdoses, quite frankly, we treat it like a homicide,” Catalina said.
The other man survived the overdose and was treated at the hospital. Investigators say they found glass bottles of cocaine and fentanyl in the brother’s home.
“You know, it’s almost impossible to find somebody in Suffolk County who has not been either directly or indirectly affected by this issue,” Catalina said.
Also recovered in the home were cell phones that linked Gonzales to the sale of the drugs to the brothers, according to Tierney.
Gonzales faces 15 years to life in prison if convicted. He will be arraigned on Monday because he still needs to retain a lawyer.
* Get Eyewitness News Delivered
* More local news
* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts
Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News
Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.
Copyright © 2026 WABC-TV. All Rights Reserved.
