A starting lineman for the New England Patriots worked as an informant for federal drug agents in North Attleboro and Foxboro after he was arrested in New York on a charge he was carrying a small amount of oxycodone but had no prescription for the powerful painkiller.

Wearing a wire, Nick Kaczur, 28, helped agents build a case against his alleged supplier, Daniel Ekasala, who pleaded not guilty Wednesday in U.S. District Court to three counts of possession of oxycodone with intent to distribute.

Ekasala's lawyer, Bernard Grossberg, confirmed Kaczur was the unidentified cooperating witness described in court documents.

Kaczur has an unlisted telephone number and could not be reached for comment Wednesday. He denied to the Boston Globe that he participated in the investigation.

"I don't know what you're talking about, bro," he said. According to an affidavit filed in court by a special agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration, the cooperating witness wore a recording device during three drug buys in May - one each in North Attleboro, Foxboro and Sharon.

In each of the deals, the witness bought 100 OxyContin pills, the more widely known trade name for oxycodone, from Ekasala for $3,900 in cash, agent Todd Prough said.

Ekasala, 34, was arrested May 13 after meeting the witness in the parking lot of the Shaw's supermarket in Sharon and selling him 100 pills, according to the affidavit. Ekasala was indicted Tuesday and remains free on an unsecured bond of $10,000.

Grossberg said Kaczur told the DEA he began purchasing OxyContin in November, getting 100 pills every few days. But the lawyer said he believes Kaczur inflated the quantity he bought to "increase his importance or usability to the DEA."

Grossberg said Ekasala, an unemployed construction worker and father of 2-year-old twins, was sympathetic to Kaczur and somewhat in awe of him because of his status as a Patriots player.

"As anybody who meets a professional athlete, someone such as Mr. Kaczur, I think he became somewhat enamored by his contact with him, and was enticed to do certain things," Grossberg said.

Grossberg said Ekasala, of Saugus, repeatedly suggested to Kaczur in text messages that he should not be using OxyContin.

"(His) opinion is that Kaczur took them originally for pain and because they are so highly addictive, he became addicted to them and dependent on them," Grossberg said.

Grossberg also questioned whether authorities were giving special treatment to Kaczur.

"It's a concern that the case not be handled any differently than any other case in which a defendant is charged with these offenses," he said. "I'd be interested to see what the deal is that Kaczur has gotten with the government," Grossberg said.

Kaczur, who lives in Attleboro, was pulled over by state police in Whitestown, N.Y., on April 27, for driving 76 mph in a 65 mph zone.

He was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree, a misdemeanor, said Sgt. Kern Swoboda, a spokesman for the state police.

State police said Kaczur was issued a summons to appear in court on May 12, but did not know the current status of his case. A judge in the Whitestown Town Court in Whitesboro, N.Y., said details on the case would not be available until the court is in session on Monday.

Stacey James, a spokesman for the Patriots, would not comment on Kaczur and referred questions to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

"We have no involvement in this," James said.

A spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan declined to comment.

Kaczur's agent, Vance Malinovic, did not return multiple messages left by The Associated Press.

Kaczur, who was drafted by the Patriots in 2005, started 15 games last year.

The alleged drug involvement leaves Kaczur's status with the Patriots in doubt. The team this week signed free agent Oliver Ross, a veteran who plays right tackle, the same position as Kaczur.