A Montgomery man was found guilty in federal court today of selling fentanyl to a man who died the same day after taking the drug.
Lawrence Coley III, 37, was found guilty of distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death and possession of fentanyl with the intent to distribute the illegal drug, said U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Alabama Jonathan Ross.
The victim was not identified in court documents.
On August 26, 2022, Montgomery Police responded to a report of an unresponsive person in a vehicle at a Montgomery home. When they arrived, they found a truck in the driveway with the ignition still on and the doors locked.
There was a dead man in the truck.
A coroner concluded that the victim died from the toxic effects of fentanyl.
Ross said the jury heard expert testimony that the amount of fentanyl found in the victim’s blood was four to five times the lethal dose.
An investigation into how the victim obtained the fentanyl revealed that Coley had been supplying the victim with illegal narcotics for over a year.
The transactions took place almost daily, sometimes even several times a day.
The jury also heard testimony confirming that the victim had purchased narcotics from Coley on the morning of his death.
Investigators obtained a search warrant for Coley’s apartment and found 70 blue pills marked “M” on one side and “30” on the other.
Because of their color and markings, the pills looked like pharmaceutical oxycodone tablets.
However, laboratory tests revealed that the pills were counterfeit and contained fentanyl instead of oxycodone.
When officers arrested Coley during a traffic stop, they found five more counterfeit fentanyl pills on him.
In finding Coley guilty, the jury found that the fentanyl he sold to the victim caused his death and that Coley intended to distribute the fentanyl pills in his possession.
“Counterfeit pills containing fentanyl have become commonplace in Alabama and across the United States,” Ross said.
“Everyone should assume that any pill that does not come from a doctor or pharmacy may contain a lethal dose of fentanyl or another deadly drug. My office is committed to holding individuals who sell these dangerous pills accountable.”
