LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A Las Vegas man was sentenced to 10 years in prison, followed by 15 years of supervised release, for distributing counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl, which resulted in the death of another person.
30-year-old Gabriel Ulloa pleaded guilty in May 2022 to the distribution of a controlled substance.
According to court documents, in June 2020, Ulloa sold three counterfeit M-30 oxycodone pills that contained fentanyl, and Ulloa’s phone records indicated that he was aware he was selling counterfeit pills.
A 27-year-old man – who believed he was buying oxycodone pills from Ulloa – died as a result of ingesting the fentanyl-laced pills.
Fentanyl – a Schedule II controlled substance – is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin. According to the Department of Justice, just two milligrams of fentanyl, or the amount that could fit on the tip of a pencil, is considered a potentially lethal dose.
In 2021, a record number of Americans – 107,622 – died from drug poisoning or overdose, with sixty-six percent of those deaths attributed to synthetic opioids, such as fentanyl.
