Virginia teen sentenced to federal prison after ordering 800 fentanyl-laced pills through Snapchat

ABINGDON, Va. (WRIC) — A Virginia teen, who ordered a whole lot of fentanyl-laced tablets by way of Snapchat from a provider in California, has been sentenced to 42 months in federal jail.

19-year-old Kobe Malik Woods pleaded responsible in January to at least one depend of possession with the intent to distribute greater than 40 grams of fentanyl.

“All through the Commonwealth of Virginia and throughout the nation, people are scuffling with substance abuse dysfunction, a illness fueled by those that revenue from habit,” United States Lawyer Christopher R. Kavanaugh mentioned. “Fentanyl-laced tablets pose a major threat of demise to anybody who ingests them, and my workplace will proceed to deliver people to account for trafficking these lethal medication in our communities.”

Particular Agent in Cost of the FBI’s Richmond Division, Stanley M. Meador, reiterated the significance of getting the medication off the streets.

“Our mission is to guard the American folks. This consists of doing our half working with our native and federal regulation enforcement companions to determine and arrest these accountable for introducing these tablets, or any illicit drug, into our communities,” Meador mentioned.

Court docket paperwork acknowledged, in early 2021, regulation enforcement started to analyze a flood of unlawful capsule distribution in Smyth County, Virginia. Investigators recognized a number of individuals who have been concerned. They intercepted a parcel shipped from California and addressed to Woods’s residence that contained roughly 800 fentanyl tablets.

The Division of Justice mentioned the intercepted tablets resembled pharmaceutical-grade oxycodone-hydrochloride tablets and have been inconsistent in form, dimension and shade. In keeping with DoJ, that indicated the tablets have been counterfeit. Tablets of this kind are typically known as “Roxicodone,” “pressed,” or “M30” tablets. The tablets usually have an imprint of an “M” on one facet and a “30” on the opposite facet. 

In June 2021, regulation enforcement executed a managed supply of the parcel to Woods’s residence in Marion, Va. Whereas conducting surveillance, the investigators noticed a lady retrieve the package deal and take it inside. Investigators executed a search warrant and Woods tried to flee with the parcel in his fingers however was captured a brief distance away from the house.