FARMINGVILLE MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO OPERATING A DRUG LAB IN RONKONKOMA

(SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y.) – Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney today announced that Matthew Leshinsky, 23, of Farmingville, pleaded guilty to Unlawful Manufacture of Methamphetamine in the Third Degree and other related charges, for manufacturing methamphetamine and other illicit drugs at his business, Quantitative Laboratories, LLC, in Ronkonkoma.

“This defendant was operating a Breaking Bad-style drug lab and tried to conceal it under the guise of a legitimate business. He then inadvertently turned himself in when he reported that a burglary occurred at that same business,” said District Attorney Tierney. “I want to thank the Suffolk County Police Department officers who keenly identified evidence of a clandestine drug lab during their initial response to the scene, as well as our prosecutors and other members of law enforcement for their collaborative efforts to further investigate this defendant and hold him accountable for the deadly drugs he put out onto the streets of Suffolk County.”

According to the investigation and the defendant’s admissions during his guilty plea allocution, on June 7, 2023, at approximately 3:30 a.m., Leshinsky called 911 to report a burglary in progress at his purported business establishment, Quantitative Laboratories, LLC, in Ronkonkoma.

When officers from the Suffolk County Police Department’s Fifth Precinct responded to the scene, they observed broken glass at the entrance of the lab. While the officers continued investigating, they discovered what appeared to be a clandestine laboratory that was involved in the manufacture, production, and preparation of methamphetamine and dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a hallucinogenic substance, amongst other controlled substances.

After obtaining a search warrant for the location, law enforcement found over 100 items of laboratory equipment, chemical reagents and solvents used in the manufacture, production, or preparation of methamphetamine, as well as substances that resulted from the production or preparation of methamphetamine. Police also recovered $40,000 in cash, a quantity of MDMA (ecstasy), over 3 ounces of methamphetamine, over 625,000 milligrams of pure ketamine, and over 20 plastic 55 gallon drums containing Gamma-butyrolactone (GBL), which is chemically similar to Gamma hydroxybutyric acid (GHB), often times referred to as the “date rape drug.”

On February 15, 2024, Leshinsky pleaded guilty to the following charges before Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable Richard Ambro:

• One count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Second Degree, a Class A-II felony;
• One count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree, a Class B felony;
• Three counts of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Fifth Degree, Class D felonies;
• One count of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Fourth Degree, a Class C felony;
• Two counts of Unlawful Manufacture of Methamphetamine in the Third Degree, Class D felonies;
• One count of Unlawful Disposal of Methamphetamine Laboratory Material, a Class E felony;
• One count of Criminal Possession of Methamphetamine Manufacturing Material in the Second Degree, a Class A misdemeanor;
• Two counts of Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the Seventh Degree, Class A misdemeanors; and
• One count of Reckless Endangerment in the Second Degree, a Class A misdemeanor.

Leshinsky is due back in court for sentencing on March 20, 2024, and he is being represented by David Besso, Esq.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Saam Jalayer of the Narcotics Bureau with investigative assistance from members of the Suffolk County Police Department’s Fifth Precinct, Arson Squad, and Narcotics Section, and members of the New York State Police’s Contaminated Crime Scene Emergency Response Team.

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Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. No one is above the law.

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