A Dallas man was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison after prosecutors said he sold counterfeit fentanyl pills to juveniles, including a 14-year-old minor who survived an overdose.
Demario White, 40, was sentenced July 6 after pleading guilty in March to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas announced. U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade Godbey imposed the 240-month sentence.
According to court documents, White sold a juvenile seven counterfeit M30 pills containing fentanyl for $35. Counterfeit M30 pills are commonly made to resemble 30-milligram prescription oxycodone tablets but may contain illicit fentanyl, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
The juvenile and a 14-year-old friend took the pills, and the younger teen overdosed but survived after receiving medical treatment.
The juvenile identified the supplier to police as “Mario,” prosecutors said.
Officers obtained an arrest warrant for White and searched his apartment on Brookgreen Drive in Dallas on April 17, 2024. Investigators found thousands of counterfeit M30 pills containing fentanyl, according to prosecutors.
White told officers he obtained between 3,000 and 4,000 fentanyl pills at a time and sold them for $5 each, prosecutors said.
A federal grand jury indicted White in May 2024.
“To sell deadly fentanyl to a juvenile is one of the most shocking and callous ways to hurt a community,” acting DEA Dallas Special Agent in Charge Ivan Carrera said in a statement.