South Bend’s ‘Ace’ Herron Gets 10 Years for Fentanyl, Guns

Rashee Herron, 27, of South Bend, Indiana, is headed to federal prison for a decade after being caught red-handed in a fentanyl and firearms operation that laid bare the city’s opioid underworld. Herron, known to buyers as “Ace,” pleaded guilty to possessing fentanyl with intent to distribute and possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. On Monday, he was sentenced to 120 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release by U.S. District Court Judge Robert L. Miller, Jr.

The case cracked open during a local probe into heroin and fentanyl distribution in July 2018. On July 10, an undercover investigator dialed a number linked to a dealer using the street alias “Ace.” Herron showed up for the buy, clutching baggies believed to contain narcotics, but abruptly walked away when the undercover officer refused his demand to use drugs on the spot. The deal collapsed, but the investigation didn’t.

Later that same day, another controlled purchase was arranged. This time, Herron’s co-defendant arrived behind the wheel of the same vehicle Herron had driven earlier and handed over approximately 1 gram of fentanyl for $140. The transaction sealed the connection between Herron, his associate, and the ongoing drug trade.

Three days later, on July 13, law enforcement executed a search warrant at a South Bend residence tied to both men. Inside a bedroom shared by Herron and his co-defendant, agents uncovered nearly 100 grams of fentanyl — a lethal stash capable of thousands of doses — along with two loaded handguns, digital scales, marijuana, a money counter, and more than $30,000 in cash. The haul painted a clear picture: this was no low-level operation.

The investigation was led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), with critical support from the South Bend Police Department. The evidence, from phone records to vehicle tracking and physical contraband, built an airtight case that left Herron with no option but to plead guilty.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Joel Gabrielse and Molly Donnelly prosecuted the case, pushing for a sentence that matched the danger Herron posed to the community. With fentanyl fueling a national crisis, federal prosecutors are cracking down hard on dealers who arm themselves. Herron’s decade behind bars sends a message: in the age of synthetic opioids, the stakes — and the sentences — have never been higher.