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Posted: Aug. 1, 2018 12:01 am
SUPERIOR COURT — One of two men busted in an undercover operation and charged with selling LSD in the county has declined a plea offer from the state, stating he won’t agree to it if he has to divulge who supplied the psychedelic drug to him.
Kevin L. Dilks, 43, of Hopatcong, appeared Monday in front of Judge William J. McGovern III.
Dilks and his codefendant Blake Pupo were indicted by a Sussex County grand jury in May and are facing a total of 24 charges, 21 of which are against Pupo.
Dilks is facing two counts of first-degree manufacturing/distributing a controlled dangerous substance and third-degree conspiracy.
In April, the state offered a plea deal of 16 years in state prison with eight years parole ineligibility in exchange for a guilty plea to one count of first-degree manufacturing/distributing a controlled dangerous substance.
Prior to the April offer, Assistant Prosecutor Jerome Neidhardt, representing the state, offered Dilks a 13-year prison term with 61/2 years of parole ineligibility.
Dilks initially declined that offer.
While Neidhardt said Monday that there is no other plea offer on the table at this point, Dilks’ attorney, Charles O’Connell, has asked the state to reconsider the initial 13-year prison offer.
However, O’Connell said the state is looking for Dilks to state the facts of the crime, but Dilks declines to do so because he believes what the state is seeking is «not the truth.»
Neidhardt stated that if Dilks is not willing to tell the facts, there is no factual basis and no deal.
O’Connell said, «He’s willing to indicate he got (the drugs) from a source in Jersey City,» before Neidhardt interrupted, «…which is an absolute lie.
«That is not a factual basis that would be satisfactory to the state,» Neidhardt finished.
McGovern said that due to the tension between counsel, there would «obviously be no meeting of the minds, therefore no plea agreement.»
Should counsel not come to an agreement, the case will head to trial.
If convicted, Dilks’ and Pupo’s sentences would be mandated by the Brimage guidelines, which require a minimum term of imprisonment for certain drug-related offenses.
A defendant’s prior drug convictions are weighed heavily in the guidelines.
Dilks and Pupo were on drug court probation when they were arrested and have each spent time in prison, according to court records.
Dilks spent roughly four years in state prison and three years in the county jail between 1999 and 2017 on conspiracy, receiving stolen property and drug-related convictions.
In February 2017, he was sentenced to the drug court program for a second-degree distribution of drugs charge after serving 426 days in the county jail.
Since 2008, Pupo has spent 180 days in the county jail for defrauding a urine test and 14 years on probation on various charges.
The undercover investigation into the distribution of LSD in the county led the Sussex County Prosecutor’s Office to Pupo and Dilks in March after it is alleged Dilks twice sold LSD to an individual cooperating with the Sussex County Gangs, Guns and Narcotics Task Force.
The Prosecutor’s Office said the undercover individual went to Dilks’ home two times to purchase LSD, and Dilks sold more than 100 mg of LSD to the person each time.
Police searched Pupo and Dilks, their homes and their vehicles and placed them under arrest.
In a hearing after their arrest, a judge chose to detain both until their cases are resolved.
Dilks and Pupo are expected to appear back in court on Aug. 27.
Lori Comstock can also be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH, on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.
SUPERIOR COURT — One of two men busted in an undercover operation and charged with selling LSD in the county has declined a plea offer from the state, stating he won’t agree to it if he has to divulge who supplied the psychedelic drug to him.
Kevin L. Dilks, 43, of Hopatcong, appeared Monday in front of Judge William J. McGovern III.
Dilks and his codefendant Blake Pupo were indicted by a Sussex County grand jury in May and are facing a total of 24 charges, 21 of which are against Pupo.
Dilks is facing two counts of first-degree manufacturing/distributing a controlled dangerous substance and third-degree conspiracy.
In April, the state offered a plea deal of 16 years in state prison with eight years parole ineligibility in exchange for a guilty plea to one count of first-degree manufacturing/distributing a controlled dangerous substance.
Prior to the April offer, Assistant Prosecutor Jerome Neidhardt, representing the state, offered Dilks a 13-year prison term with 61/2 years of parole ineligibility.
Dilks initially declined that offer.
While Neidhardt said Monday that there is no other plea offer on the table at this point, Dilks’ attorney, Charles O’Connell, has asked the state to reconsider the initial 13-year prison offer.
However, O’Connell said the state is looking for Dilks to state the facts of the crime, but Dilks declines to do so because he believes what the state is seeking is «not the truth.»
Neidhardt stated that if Dilks is not willing to tell the facts, there is no factual basis and no deal.
O’Connell said, «He’s willing to indicate he got (the drugs) from a source in Jersey City,» before Neidhardt interrupted, «…which is an absolute lie.
«That is not a factual basis that would be satisfactory to the state,» Neidhardt finished.
McGovern said that due to the tension between counsel, there would «obviously be no meeting of the minds, therefore no plea agreement.»
Should counsel not come to an agreement, the case will head to trial.
If convicted, Dilks’ and Pupo’s sentences would be mandated by the Brimage guidelines, which require a minimum term of imprisonment for certain drug-related offenses.
A defendant’s prior drug convictions are weighed heavily in the guidelines.
Dilks and Pupo were on drug court probation when they were arrested and have each spent time in prison, according to court records.
Dilks spent roughly four years in state prison and three years in the county jail between 1999 and 2017 on conspiracy, receiving stolen property and drug-related convictions.
In February 2017, he was sentenced to the drug court program for a second-degree distribution of drugs charge after serving 426 days in the county jail.
Since 2008, Pupo has spent 180 days in the county jail for defrauding a urine test and 14 years on probation on various charges.
The undercover investigation into the distribution of LSD in the county led the Sussex County Prosecutor’s Office to Pupo and Dilks in March after it is alleged Dilks twice sold LSD to an individual cooperating with the Sussex County Gangs, Guns and Narcotics Task Force.
The Prosecutor’s Office said the undercover individual went to Dilks’ home two times to purchase LSD, and Dilks sold more than 100 mg of LSD to the person each time.
Police searched Pupo and Dilks, their homes and their vehicles and placed them under arrest.
In a hearing after their arrest, a judge chose to detain both until their cases are resolved.
Dilks and Pupo are expected to appear back in court on Aug. 27.
Lori Comstock can also be reached on Twitter: @LoriComstockNJH, on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/LoriComstockNJH or by phone: 973-383-1194.