Atty: Man arrested amid Hoffman probe kept drugs for himself
NEW YORK - A lawyer for a musician arrested amid an investigation into actor Philip Seymour Hoffman's death says about 300 packets of heroin allegedly found in the musician's New York City apartment and studio would have been largely for his own consumption.
Robert Vineberg was in court Friday seeking bail on a charge of possession of heroin with the intent to sell. A judge
set bond at $200,000.
Defense lawyer Edward Kratt says Vineberg has a 10-bag-a-day heroin addiction and much of the alleged stash "was for his own use."
Vineberg told the New York Post on Saturday that he and Hoffman were friends and last communicated by text in December.
Vineberg was one of four people rounded up in connection with the investigation into Hoffman’s apparent fatal overdose. Juliana Luchkiw, 22, and Max Rosenblum, 22, were arraigned along with Vineberg last week. They both face misdemeanor drug possession charges. Prosecutors did not file charges against the fourth person.
Hoffman, 46, was mourned by hundreds of family and friends last Friday at a funeral in Manhattan. He leaves behind his longtime partner and their three young children.