Adrian Rodriguez Cardenas, Fentanyl Conspiracy, California 2021

Convicted: Adrian Rodriguez Cardenas, 22

Crime: Conspiring to distribute fentanyl

City, State: Bakersfield, California

Date: Not specified

Sentence: 6 years in prison

Facts: Adrian Rodriguez Cardenas, 22, of Bakersfield, was sentenced to six years in prison for conspiring to distribute fentanyl.

According to court documents, on January 11, 2021, Cardenas negotiated with and sold to an undercover law enforcement officer counterfeit OxyContin/oxycodone pills containing fentanyl. Cardenas thereafter negotiated a second sale of pills to the undercover officer.

On January 19, 2021, co-defendant Keisean Rockmore, 27, also of Bakersfield, drove Cardenas and a third person to a fast-food restaurant parking lot in Bakersfield to meet with and sell to the undercover officer 1,000 fentanyl-laced pills for the negotiated price of $2,900.

At least one of the vehicle occupants possessed a firearm during the meeting, which he pointed at the undercover officer during the transaction. Rockmore then fled in his vehicle with Cardenas and the other passenger to a nearby apartment complex, where they exited the vehicle and attempted to elude pursuing law enforcement officers.

After law enforcement officers found and arrested Cardenas, Rockmore and the other accomplice at the apartment complex, they discovered nearby a loaded firearm and more than 50 counterfeit OxyContin/oxycodone pills.

On April 29, 2022, co-defendant Rockmore was sentenced to 21 months in prison for possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Kern County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher D. Baker and Justin J. Gilio are prosecuting the case.

This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime.

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