Martinus Shamar Watts, Fentanyl Trafficking, Kentucky 2020

A Detroit man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for his role in a fentanyl trafficking operation that resulted in the overdose of a local resident.

Martinus Shamar Watts, 32, of Detroit, was sentenced to 240 months in federal prison on Friday, by U.S. District Judge Karen K. Caldwell, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl and distribution of fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury.

According to Watts’ plea agreement, he admitted that he personally distributed fentanyl, supplied his co-defendants with the drug for distribution, and directed his co-defendants in their distribution of fentanyl. Watts further admitted to distributing fentanyl on March 20, 2019 to an individual who overdosed and nearly died from use of the substance.

In June 2019, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Watts’ local address in Lexington. Officers located drugs, two firearms, and more than $67,000 in U.S. currency that Watts admitted was proceeds of his drug trafficking activities.

Watts pleaded guilty in August 2020.

Under federal law, Watts must serve 85 percent of his prison sentence. Upon his release from prison, Watts will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for 5 years.

The investigation was conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Lexington Police Department. The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Todd Bradbury.

Watts’ sentence is a significant blow to the growing opioid epidemic in Kentucky. His actions put countless lives at risk, and his punishment serves as a reminder of the consequences of fentanyl trafficking.

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