Suspended priest sentenced to 5 years for meth distribution

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – A suspended Roman Catholic priest in Connecticut has been sentenced to more than five years in prison for running a meth distribution ring.

Monsignor Kevin Wallin said at the hearing Thursday in Hartford federal court that, when he was arrested, it was the best day of his life because it saved him from his drug dealing.

The 63-year-old priest in Bridgeport received methamphetamine in the mail from California suppliers and supplied a New York distributor. Prosecutors say he also bought a sex shop, apparently to launder profits from the drug ring.

Wallin has been in jail since he pleaded guilty to drug charges in 2013.

He was sentenced to five years and five months in prison. He could have been sentenced to 10 years.