David Reichard, Fentanyl Trafficking, Connecticut 2018

A Stamford man has been charged with manufacturing and distributing counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl analogues.

David Reichard, 30, of Stamford, pleaded guilty to a charge stemming from his role in a conspiracy to manufacture and distribute counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl analogues.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Reichard's associates purchased fentanyl analogues from suppliers in China. Reichard and his associates then pressed the drug into counterfeit oxycodone pills and mailed the pills to customers who had purchased them on dark web markets.

On April 3, 2018, a court-authorized search of a Stamford residence revealed numerous pills containing approximately 330 grams of fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl, approximately 40 grams of fentanyl analogues in powder form, three pill presses, instructions on how to prepare the fentanyl analogue Carfentanil, a hazardous material suit, a gas/respirator-type mask, and numerous U.S. Postal mail envelopes.

Reichard was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on April 13, 2018. Today, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute, and to possess with intent to distribute, fentanyl analogue, an offense that carries a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and a maximum term of imprisonment of life.

Judge Stefan R. Underhill scheduled sentencing for July 29, 2019. The investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Drug Enforcement Administration, Connecticut State Police, and Stamford Police Department, with the assistance of the Albanian State Police. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas P. Morabito.

The mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of 10 years and the maximum term of imprisonment of life serves as a stark reminder of the severity of the crime.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ct/pr/stamford-man-pleads-guilty-role-trafficking-fake-oxycodone-pills-containing-fentanyl