A 35-year-old Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to 54 months in prison for distributing fentanyl and acetyl fentanyl in the Western District of Washington, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman.
Jesse S. Dittmar sent multiple envelopes containing the deadly fentanyl to his former girlfriend, who had moved to her brother’s home in Seattle. The victim, a 32-year-old woman, was found dead on January 29, 2019, less than 24 hours after she texted Dittmar that she had taken some of the drugs and was feeling unwell.
Chief U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez noted the ‘recklessness’ of sending powerful fentanyl through the mail, saying, ‘This is a sad case from every possible aspect… You are responsible for the direct actions you took that led to the victim’s death.’
According to records filed in the case, the victim broke up with Dittmar and moved to her brother’s home in Seattle in the fall of 2018. Despite Dittmar’s repeated attempts to text the victim, she cut off contact with him until December 2018. During December 2018 and January 2019, Dittmar and the victim were in contact, and the texts made clear he was sending her drugs enclosed in greeting cards.
Dittmar repeatedly threatened suicide or exposure of the victim’s drug use if she did not continue the relationship. On the day she died, the victim texted Dittmar that she had taken some of the drugs and did not feel well. Dittmar texted the victim 25 times over the next few hours but did not get any response. He did not call her family or alert 9-1-1 that she might have overdosed. She was discovered dead the next day.
Following the victim’s death, multiple greeting cards and packaging materials for drugs were found in the victim’s bedroom. The King County Medical Examiner determined the victim died from acute drug intoxication, including fentanyl.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) with assistance from the Seattle Police Department and Seattle Fire Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lyndsie Schmalz.
The sentencing comes as fentanyl-related overdose deaths continue to rise in the Seattle area, up 38% in 2021 compared to the first six months of 2020, said Acting U.S. Attorney Gorman. ‘Sending deadly fentanyl through the mail, disguised in colorful greeting cards, was incredibly dangerous – for postal workers and for the children and adults who may have opened the cards in their Seattle home.’
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Key Facts
- State: Washington
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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