Man caught in Chalmette with over a half-pound of heroin – the largest amount seized in St. Bernard Parish – gets 25-year sentence without possibility of parole or suspension after pleading guilty

A man caught in Chalmette last year with more than a half-pound of heroin – the largest amount ever seized in St. Bernard Parish – received a 25-year sentence without possibility of parole or suspension on Monday after pleading guilty as an habitual offender.

Alvin Clay, 29, ringleader of a group of six people arrested in Chalmette in March 2015, had 8.3 ounces of heroin worth more than $100,000 on the streets, Sheriff James Pohlmann said at the time of the arrests. He pleaded to possession with intent to distribute heroin.

Clay, scheduled for trial in Chalmette received the 25-year sentence from state District Judge Jeanne Juneau on Monday under a deal in which he was prosecuted as a repeat offender.

“This was great police work by the Sheriff’s Office,’’ to make the arrest, District Attorney Perry Nicosia said. He added that the case “continues my campaign promise to make use of the repeat offender law to make sure criminals receive an appropriate sentence.’’

Assistant District Attorney Charles Ward handled prosecution of Clay.

Clay has a lengthy criminal history that includes 30 months spent in prison for drugs and weapons in a New Orleans conviction. When arrested he was out on bond in New Orleans where he also had been booked with possession with intent to distribute heroin and marijuana.

He had just moved into Chalmette before his arrest by the St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office.

Clay has been jailed in Chalmette since his arrest.