2 men plead guilty to providing fentanyl-laced heroin that killed prominent NYC transgender activist
NEW YORK — Two men have pleaded guilty to supplying heroin laced with fentanyl that killed Prominent New York City transgender activist Cecilia Gentili committed a crime earlier this year, federal prosecutors said Monday.
Michael Kuilan, 44, pleaded guilty to a charge of distributing and possessing with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl in Brooklyn federal court on Monday, according to the office of U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Breon Peace. Antonio Venti, 52, pleaded guilty to the same charge in July.
As part of their plea agreements, prosecutors said the men admitted causing Gentili’s death. They said text messages, cell phone data and other evidence showed that Kuilan, a Brooklyn resident, had supplied Venti, a Long Island resident, with drugs that he then sold to Gentili.
During a search of Kuilan’s home, officers also found hundreds of small baggies of fentanyl, a handgun and ammunition.
“While these admissions of guilt cannot undo the tragic loss of transgender rights activist Cecelia Gentili, they send a message that we will do everything we can to ensure that those responsible for drug-related deaths face the consequences of their actions and that the families of those who lost their lives receive justice,” said Frank Tarentino, special agent in charge of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration’s New York office.
Gentili was a former sex worker who became a leading advocate for other transgender people, as well as sex workers and people living with HIV. She also starred in the FX television series “Pose”, about the underground ballroom dance scene in the 1980s and 1990s.
Her well-attended funeral at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan aroused outrage from some in the Catholic community, including the venerable church’s own pastor.
Gentili was found dead in her bedroom on February 6, the day after she bought drugs from Venti. Prosecutors say the 52-year-old Brooklyn resident’s death was caused by the combined effects of fentanyl, heroin, xylazine and cocaine.
Kuilan is expected to be sentenced in January and Venti is scheduled to be sentenced next month. Attorneys for the two men did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment Monday.
___
This story has been corrected to reflect that Kuilan will be sentenced in January, not next month.