Todd Michael Fulkerson, Fentanyl and Cocaine Trafficking, Ohio 2024

COLUMBUS, Ohio – In a shocking turn of events, Todd Michael Fulkerson, 42, of Columbus, pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute fentanyl and cocaine in the Southern District of Ohio.

Fulkerson admitted to conspiring with Caleb Barillaro, 30, to traffic kilograms of fentanyl and cocaine from Mexico and Arizona. The two men drove separate vehicles to Arizona, where they met to pick up the illicit substances.

On February 2024, Fulkerson traveled to Arizona at the request of Caleb Barillaro, where they purchased two kilograms of fentanyl and five kilograms of cocaine for $94,000 in cash. Fulkerson accompanied Caleb on the trip to provide security, a role he was recruited for based on his military experience.

However, their plan was foiled when law enforcement surveilled the two vehicles traveling in tandem back towards Ohio from Arizona. The two men stopped at a gas station near the Indiana and Ohio border, where Caleb discovered that the melting ice in a cooler had ruined some of the kilograms of drugs. He became upset and took the cooler to his car, eventually discarding the drugs along the side of the road.

Fulkerson faces up to 20 years in prison for his role in transporting the drugs.

According to court documents, Fulkerson’s co-conspirators, the Barillaro brothers, have each pleaded guilty to federal narcotics crimes punishable by at least 10 years and up to life in prison. The cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.

Fulkerson’s sentencing date has not been set, but he is expected to face a significant prison sentence for his role in the drug trafficking operation.

Lazae Lett, 24, of Chillicothe, also pleaded guilty to laundering drug proceeds to Sinaloa, Mexico, to help Dillon Barillaro, 31, obtain more drugs through a source of supply there. She sent several approximately $2,000 money orders via Western Union money orders from Walmart and two Kroger locations in Chillicothe.

Lett faces up to 20 years in prison for her role in laundering drug proceeds.

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