INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Kevin Noel, 40, is facing over 17 years behind bars after a raid on his Indianapolis home turned up enough fentanyl to kill a small city. The career criminal, already on home detention, was sentenced to 210 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
The bust went down January 29, 2021, when Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officers, assisting Marion County Community Corrections with a routine check on Noel, smelled something rotten. What they found wasn’t just a violation of his home detention – it was a full-blown drug trafficking operation. The initial check revealed tools commonly used by dealers and signs of recent drug use, prompting a full search warrant.
Officers hit Noel’s residence and truck, uncovering a horrifying stockpile: 226 counterfeit pills containing fentanyl (totaling 24 grams), 460 grams of heroin or cocaine cut with fentanyl, 75 grams of crack cocaine, 27 grams of powder cocaine, 24 grams of methamphetamine, three semi-automatic handguns, and over $24,000 in dirty money. Noel readily admitted to intending to distribute the drugs and illegally possessing the firearms to protect his business.
The total amount of fentanyl and fentanyl-laced substances seized topped 692 grams. The Drug Enforcement Administration warns that a mere 2 milligrams of fentanyl can be lethal. Do the math: that’s enough fentanyl recovered from Noel’s operation to potentially kill 500,000 people. This isn’t just dealing; it’s mass murder waiting to happen.
This wasn’t Noel’s first rodeo. The 40-year-old has racked up four prior felony drug convictions in state court, making him legally prohibited from owning firearms. Apparently, the law meant little to him as he continued to peddle poison and arm himself. U.S. District Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson didn’t show much sympathy, sentencing Noel to the maximum and ordering four years of supervised release after his prison term.
The case was a joint effort by the DEA, ATF, and IMPD, spearheaded by U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Myers for the Southern District of Indiana. Myers hailed the conviction as a win for Project Safe Neighborhoods, a federal program aimed at reducing violent crime and gun violence. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jayson W. McGrath prosecuted the case, securing a sentence that, while lengthy, may not fully account for the devastation Noel inflicted on the streets of Indianapolis.
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Key Facts
- Agency: ATF
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Violent Crime|Weapons|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Press Release
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