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Fentanyl Dealer Pleads Guilty
A 22-year-old Mount Vernon man, Jiovanni Nunez, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, a deadly synthetic opioid. Nunez supplied counterfeit oxycodone pills tainted with fentanyl to an associate, who distributed them in Skagit and Whatcom Counties.
The pills are connected to at least two overdoses, including the overdose death of a 17-year-old Bellingham boy who died on November 9, 2019 after being found unresponsive by a family member. Despite efforts of emergency responders to resuscitate him, the victim died, with his cause of death later determined to be fentanyl overdose.
Investigations found that a friend of the 17-year-old victim nearly died after smoking one of the pills on November 2, 2019. The pills were designed to look like oxycodone 30-milligram pills, with ‘M’ and ’30’ stamped on them, but they were fakes tainted with fentanyl. Similar pills have been linked to other overdose deaths throughout the Puget Sound region.
Nunez’s co-conspirator, Rosaliana Lopez-Rodriguez, 23, of Mount Vernon, has already pleaded guilty and is scheduled for sentencing on August 19, 2021. Lopez-Rodriguez admitted that Nunez supplied her with the pills that killed the Bellingham 17-year-old.
During the investigation, law enforcement executed court-authorized search warrants at each defendant’s residence. At Nunez’s residence, law enforcement found a safe containing more than 900 fake oxycodone pills that matched the appearance of the fentanyl-laced pills linked to the fatal overdose.
Nunez faces a mandatory minimum five years in prison and up to 40 years in prison when sentenced by Chief Judge Ricardo S. Martinez on October 1, 2021. Under the terms of the plea agreement, the prosecution and defense will each recommend a term of imprisonment for Nunez of between seven and nine years.
The case is being investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office, the Skagit County Interlocal Drug Enforcement Unit (SCIDEU), and the Whatcom County Drug and Gang Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jonas Lerman.
Key Facts
- State: Washington
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime|Sex Crimes|Cybercrime|Public Corruption|Weapons|Human Trafficking|White Collar Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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