A Rutland man was sentenced Tuesday to 6½ years in prison for dealing heroin and cocaine base.
Valentino Anderson, 50, received the sentence in federal court on charges that he conspired to distribute heroin and cocaine base, a category of the drug that includes several forms of cocaine, including crack.
The charges stem from an October 2012 traffic stop, when law enforcement found about 23 grams of cocaine base in the car that Anderson and his wife were in.
At that time, Anderson told law enforcement he and his wife were driving home from Connecticut, where they had picked up the drugs. He admitted to dealing drugs for several months before he was caught.
Prosecutors also used evidence from March 2011 in the case against Anderson. Law enforcement purchased heroin from him that month.
Anderson was previously convicted of conspiracy to distribute cocaine in 2004.
U.S. District Judge Christina Reiss sentenced Anderson this week. In addition to 77 months in prison, he is sentenced to three years of supervised release.
His wife, Crystal Anderson, was sentenced in August 2013 on charges related to the bust. Her sentence was time served and three years of supervised release.
