Michael Ortega, Selling Fentanyl to Minors, California 2023

A 22-year-old Clovis man has been sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison for selling fentanyl to a minor, underscoring the growing fentanyl crisis in California.

Michael Ortega was sentenced on August 28, 2023, for selling one and a half counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl to a 17-year-old on July 2, 2020. The fentanyl caused the teenager to overdose with serious bodily injury, but fortunately, the teenager survived and has since recovered.

The case was the product of an investigation by the DEA, the Fresno Police Department, and Homeland Security Investigations, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Laurel J. Montoya prosecuting the case.

According to the DEA, the Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels are largely responsible for the influx of fentanyl into this country. Illicit fentanyl comes in two forms: pills and powder. The cartels are mixing fentanyl powder in with cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine, and hiding fentanyl in fake pills that look similar to prescription medications like oxycodone, Xanax, and Percocet.

Seven out of 10 pills tested at DEA laboratories contain a potentially deadly dose of fentanyl. The cartels and their associates often use social media applications and encrypted platforms to sell their poison. To get more facts about fentanyl, visit One Pill Can Kill.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is approximately 50 times more potent than heroin. Just two milligrams, the equivalent of a few grains of salt, can kill a person.

In 2023, large amounts of fentanyl were trafficked in or transported across the Eastern District of California. In total, approximately 86 individuals appeared in federal district courts in Sacramento and Fresno charged with fentanyl distribution offenses. Approximately 28 individuals were sentenced for fentanyl trafficking offenses with sentences ranging from two to 17 years in prison.

Another approximately 29 pleaded guilty to fentanyl-related charges and now await sentencing, with additional cases still pending.

U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and DEA Special Agent in Charge Brian M. Clark announced the actions taken in 2023 in the Eastern District of California to confront the continuing crisis caused by fentanyl.

Fentanyl is the greatest drug threat facing our communities today. It is killing Americans at catastrophic rates and devastating families from coast to coast, said DEA Special Agent in Charge Clark.

Case summaries are available for other defendants and their crimes. For more information, contact the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edca/pr/look-back-fentanyl-prosecutions-2023