Ramel General, a close associate of the man authorities say led a New London-based drug-trafficking organization, was sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Hartford to 120 months of imprisonment, followed by four years of supervised release.

General, 38, of New London, who also is known as "Ra," had pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Vanessa L. Bryant in March to conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute 500 grams or more of cocaine.

At Tuesday's sentencing, which was conducted via Zoom video conference, he faced a sentence of 120 to 150 months, 60 months of which were mandatory.

According to the government, General worked closely with Anthony "Jak Mac" Whyte, the central figure in the regional drug trafficking operation, who is awaiting trial on narcotics distribution, money laundering and weapon charges. Authorities said at Whyte's direction, General assisted in maintaining the operation's primary drug distribution location in an apartment complex above 2 Wives restaurant on Huntington Street in New London that was managed by 2 Wives owner Amy Sarcia.

General, Whyte and Sarcia were among 26 people indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2019 following a lengthy investigation by federal, state and local agencies. Whyte allegedly obtained heroin, fentanyl and cocaine from Connecticut and beyond and distributed them to others, who sold the drugs to customers and street-level drug dealers.

General, a father of four children, has been incarcerated since June 2019.

According to court documents, he has 10 previous convictions for narcotics offenses, driving under the influence and weapons and has a pending domestic violence case in state court.

In a sentencing memorandum, defense attorney David J. Wenc asked the court to consider General's difficult family and school life, and noted he had been diagnosed with a severe alcohol disorder and a poly-substance abuse disorder as well as a severe personality disorder, probable post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.

General was the victim of a shooting on Ocean Avenue in July 2012.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Natasha M. Freismuth wrote in her sentencing memorandum that General was "putting poison into his community and helping to perpetuate the horrible cycle of crime, violence, addiction, and suffering at the center of drug abuse."

"With respect to the defendant's history and characteristics, although the defendant suffered trauma, educational delays, and mental health concerns in his early life, there are no events in the defendant's history that warrant a departure from the (sentencing guideline range.) Most significantly, at the time the defendant committed the instant offense he was a grown man of thirty-six years and a father."

Jury selection for Whyte, Sarcia and co-defendants Holly Butler, Kemar Cameron, Victor Encarnacion, Antoine Forbes, Bryon McClellan and Geoffrey Gordon, and Robert Winston is scheduled for Nov. 17 in U.S. District Court in Hartford.

Sarcia is free on bond.

Whyte, 45, remains incarcerated, and has filed several motions seeking to be released from the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Central Falls, R.I., while awaiting trial. Whyte suffers from type 2 diabetes and hypertension, both of which compromise his immune system and make him vulnerable to the coronavirus, according to court documents. All of his motions have been denied.

k.florin@theday.com