HARTFORD - An Oxford man has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for what prosecutors say was his leadership of a marijuana growing and distribution conspiracy.
Cheyne Mazza was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Hartford. The 29-year-old Mazza also was sentenced to five years of supervised release.
Mazza’s sentencing follows by less than a week the sentencing of a former Ansonia alderman and two others who were caught growing more than 1,400 marijuana plants. Joseph Cassetti, the 61-year-old former alderman; Sterling Mazza of Oxford, Cheyne Mazza’s sister; and James Canavan were sentenced to more than three years in prison. All pleaded guilty to drug charges.
Prosecutors say the pot growing and selling operation ran from March 2008 to January 2010.
US Attorney David Fein said much of the marijuana was grown on properties in Ansonia and Oxford owned by Cassetti.
