Downey Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl Distribution That Killed 17-Year-Old Girl

Downey Man Pleads Guilty to Fentanyl Distribution That Killed 17-Year-Old Girl
A file photograph of a judge's gavel. (AlexStar/iStock)
City News Service
8/11/2023
Updated:
8/17/2023
0:00

A Downey, California, man pleaded guilty on Aug. 11 to a federal charge involving the sale of fentanyl-laced prescription pills that caused the death of a 17-year-old girl.

Jonathan Limas-Reyes, 27, entered his plea to a felony charge of distribution of fentanyl, which carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

A sentencing date of Dec. 15 was set. Mr. Limas-Reyes has agreed not to oppose a term of imprisonment of 14 years, court papers show.

On Oct. 29, 2021, Mr. Limas-Reyes sold the pills to the Downey teen, he admitted in a plea agreement filed in Los Angeles federal court.

Use of the pills “resulted in the death and serious bodily injury of victim A.K.,” court papers state.

“If not for the fentanyl that A.K. received ... A.K. would have lived,” prosecutors wrote.

Mr. Limas-Reyes “knew it was illegal for him to sell the pills to A.K., and knew that they contained fentanyl or some other federally controlled substance,” according to federal prosecutors.