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'Monsignor Meth' Kevin Wallin Pleads Guilty To Meth Charge

HARTFORD, Conn. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A suspended Roman Catholic priest accused of making more than $300,000 in methamphetamine sales out of his Connecticut apartment and running an adult video and sex toy shop pleaded guilty Tuesday to a federal drug charge.

Kevin Wallin, of Waterbury, admitted to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was scheduled to be sentenced June 25. The agreed-upon sentence is 11 to 14 years.

Prosecutors said the 61-year-old Wallin had meth mailed to him from co-conspirators in California and sold the drugs out of his Waterbury apartment last year. He sold nearly four pounds in all, prosecutors said. He also bought an adult video and sex toy shop in North Haven named Land of Oz & Dorothy's Place, apparently to launder the drug money, authorities said.

'Monsignor Meth' Kevin Wallin Pleads Guilty To Meth Charge

Dubbed in some media as "Monsignor Meth," Wallin was pastor of St. Augustine Parish in Bridgeport for nine years until he resigned in June 2011, citing health and personal reasons. He previously served six years as pastor of St. Peter's Church in Danbury until 2002.

He was granted a sabbatical in July 2011. The Diocese of Bridgeport suspended him from public ministry last May.

He was arrested in January, and a grand jury indicted him and four other people on drug charges.

An undercover officer bought meth from Wallin six times from Sept. 20 to Jan. 2, paying more than $3,400 in total for 23 grams of the drug, authorities said.

Federal agents said they learned through wiretaps and informants about other sales Wallin was making.

Connecticut U.S. Attorney David Fein has said the arrests dismantled "a significant methamphetamine distribution organization that spanned from California to Connecticut."

On social media, people couldn't help but compare Wallin with Walter White, the main character on "Breaking Bad," who was making so much cash that he and his wife bought a car wash to launder their profits.

Also charged in the case were Kenneth Devries of Waterbury; Michael Nelson of Manchester; Chad McCluskey of San Clemente, Calif.; and Kristen Laschober of Laguna Niguel, Calif. Authorities say McCluskey and Laschober were involved in the shipping of methamphetamine to Wallin.

Cases against the four of them are pending.

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(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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