Waterbury man sentenced in TSA drug case

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) — A Waterbury man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in a drug-trafficking ring that prosecutors say also involved Transportation Security Administration officers.

Prosecutors say 29-year-old Bruce Yazdzik was a dealer in the ring, which sent large amounts of oxycodone pills from Florida to Connecticut on commercial airliners.

Authorities say the drug dealers paid off TSA agents to allow the pills through airport security.

Twenty people, including two police officers and three TSA officers, have been charged as a result of the Drug Enforcement Administration investigation dubbed "Operation Blue Coast."

Yazdzik has been in custody since his arrest in September 2011. He pleaded guilty in April to one count of conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, oxycodone.