Cincinnati Drug Dealer Ordered to Pay Funeral Expenses for User Who Overdosed

By Bowen Xiao
November 21, 2017 Last Updated: November 21, 2017
Bags of heroin, some laced with fentanyl, are displayed before a press conference regarding a major drug bust, at the office of the New York Attorney General, September 23, 2016 in New York City. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

A drug dealer from Cincinnati has been ordered to pay the funeral expenses for a user who overdosed—as part of his sentence.

Michael Chandler, a 29-year-old man was sentenced to 200 months in prison, (over 16 years) for distributing fentanyl, according to NBC affiliate WLWT.

Included in that sentence was an order for Chandler to pay more than $9,000 in funeral costs.

Those costs count as restitution for the overdose death that directly resulted from Chandler’s drug distribution.

(Butler County Sheriff’s Office)

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) fentanyl is a synthetic opioid pain reliever that is approved to treat severe pain. It is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. Most cases of overdose are linked to illegally made fentanyl, which is sold through underground drug markets for its heroin-like effect.

The victim was a 17-year-old teen from Campbell County. He overdosed on fentanyl according to an indictment, CBS affiliate WKRC reported.

The fentanyl was traced back to Chandler after drug task forces from Campbell County, Hamilton County, and the DEA began investigating the overdose. The teen’s name was not provided by authorities.

According to WLWT, the overdose took place on April 20, 2016. The victim died after he ingested the fentanyl.

When a search warrant was executed at Chandler’s home on Lowell Avenue, Cincinnati, investigators found 28 grams of cocaine, a handgun, ammunition, and other miscellaneous drug gear.

In May this year, Chandler pleaded guilty to six drug distribution charges. This month he was sentenced in a federal court.

Months ago authorities seized a huge batch of fentanyl on Long Island, New York.

On Saturday, Oct. 28, Long Island authorities announced the seizure of 750 grams of fentanyl from a home in Mastic Beach.

The potent batch of deadly opioids was shipped from China, Suffolk County Police Commissioner Timothy Sini told CBS New York.

According to Sini, authorities seized enough to serve 1 million doses on the street.

Bags of heroin are displayed before a press conference regarding a major drug bust, at the office of the New York Attorney General, Sept. 23, 2016, in New York City. New York State Attorney General Eric Scheiderman’s office announced Friday that authorities in New York state have made a record drug bust, seizing 33 kilograms (72.8 pounds) of heroin and 2 kilograms (4.4 pounds) of fentanyl. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

“That’s potentially enough fentanyl to kill hundreds of thousands of individuals,” he told CBS.

Pharmaceutical fentanyl is a synthetic opioid painkiller, approved for treating severe pain, typically advanced cancer pain.

Apart from the deadly chemical, authorities also seized $7,400 in cash, numerous 9 mm rounds, two cellphones, and a 2007 Mercedes Benz, police said.

Sini said his department worked with the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Patrol, and the U.S. Postal Service.

Police arrested three men at the home, one of them, Corey Robinson, 24, was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance. Thomas Moore, 41, and Daequane Rickenbacker, 25, were also arrested.

From NTD.tv

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