conviction Archives - Fentanyl Victims Network of North Carolina

Gloucester man sentenced over 8 years for fentanyl distribution in girlfriend’s death

Read the original article on the WCTI News12 website.

After a four-day trial in Carteret County Superior Court, District Attorney Scott Thomas and Carteret County Sheriff Asa Buck announced that Hugh Crandall Willis, Jr. of Gloucester, was convicted by a jury for his role in the death of his girlfriend, Bethany JoAlison Styron, 25 of Davis.

Willis was convicted of the following:

Death by Distribution of Fentanyl
Sale and Delivery of Fentanyl
Felonious Possession of Fentanyl

Willis was sentenced to an active sentence of 78-106 months in the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction, followed by a 6-8 month suspended sentence for 36 months of supervised probation, according to officials.

The following is a release from the State of North Carolina General Court of Justice, Prosecutorial District Four:

During the early evening hours of July 30, 2022, Styron, who was with a friend at the time, pulled into a gas station at the corner of Highway 101 and Steel Tank Road in Carteret County.

After more than an hour sitting at the pump, Styron stopped breathing. Her friend called 911 and EMS pronounced Styron dead. Her cause of death was later confirmed to be from acute Fentanyl toxicity. After a thorough investigation into Styron’s death, Detectives uncovered that late in the day on July 28, 2022, Willis came to the Styron residence and delivered a quantity of Fentanyl to Styron and her friend that was with her during the time when she overdosed. The pair mixed the drugs purchased from Willis into a bag of drugs they had purchased earlier in Kinston. Styron purchased those narcotics on the way home from a weeklong medical inpatient stay at UNCChapel Hill hospital where she was treated for pneumonia, cardiac problems and complications of Hyper IGE Syndrome. Styron used and overdosed on the last amounts of the drugs in that mixture.

In October of 2022, Detectives reached a point in their investigation to charge Willis with the Sale and Distribution of Fentanyl and received an arrest warrant for that charge. When Deputies arrived at Willis’ home to serve him with that warrant and arrest him, Willis was found in possession of more of what was confirmed by the state lab as Fentanyl.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney David L. Spence, the lead detective in the case was Joseph (Cory) Bishop of the Carteret County Sheriff’s Office. The State presented 14 witnesses and 37 exhibits of evidence. The Defendant did not present any evidence. Resident Superior Court Judge Augustus Willis presided over the trial.

𝐅𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐞𝐫

Raleigh Fentanyl Trafficker Sentenced to More Than 23 Years in Prison

RALEIGH, N.C. – A Wake County man was sentenced today to more than 23 years (283 months) in prison on drug charges. Myquan Taquil Houston, aka “Dirty,” pled guilty on January 13, 2025, to the offenses of conspiracy to distribute and possession with the intent to distribute 40 grams or more of a substance containing fentanyl, and possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of a substance containing fentanyl and 500 grams or more of cocaine.

According to court documents and other information presented in court, Houston conspired with another person to sell fentanyl to a confidential informant on five occasions in Raleigh. Law enforcement searched Houston’s house in Knightdale, North Carolina on July 26, 2023. The search revealed 502.29 grams of cocaine, 41.54 grams of cocaine base (crack), 134.46 grams of fentanyl and ANPP, 26.6 grams of Oxycodone, digital scales, a loaded .45 caliber handgun, two cellphones, and $7,970 in U.S. currency. The investigation determined that Houston sold approximately $1,400 of fentanyl every other week for at least a year prior to his arrest, making him responsible for 1,590.46 grams of fentanyl and 635.1 grams of cocaine.

Houston has prior convictions for felony breaking and entering and conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute a quantity of cocaine and a quantity of cocaine base (crack), distribution of a quantity of cocaine, and aiding and abetting. Houston was on federal supervised release in the Eastern District of North Carolina at the time of these offenses.

Daniel P. Bubar, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge James C. Dever III. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Raleigh Police Department investigated the case and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Aria Q. Merle prosecuted the case.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina or on PACER by searching for Case No. 5:24-CR-00238.

Download PRess Release PDF

Overdose Tragedy Leads to Death by Distribution Arrest

Woman found guilty of felony death charge following overdose investigation

Read the original article and watch the video on the Fox Carolina News website.

HENDERSON COUNTY, N.C. (FOX Carolina) – The District Attorney’s Office for Prosecutorial District 42 reports that a woman was found guilty after a victim died from ingesting Fentanyl in 2023.

Heather Marie Maybin, 38, from Hendersonville, was found guilty of death by distribution.

The court trial record said that Maybin was a drug dealer who conducted her controlled substances activities over Facebook Messenger.

A transaction she arranged in the Walmart parking lot located off Highland Square Drive on Feb. 6, 2023, involved a quantity of fentanyl sold for $40, the court trial record said.

The investigation revealed the victim and a friend ingested the drug that evening through a hypodermic needle. The victim lost consciousness, stopped breathing and was later declared to have died from Fentanyl toxicity

PREVIOUS: Woman facing felony death charges following overdose investigation

The Henderson County Sheriff’s Office used a search warrant to obtain communications received through Facebook Messenger, court records said.

Maybin was sentenced to a minimum term of 66 months and a maximum term of 92 months in the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections.

District Attorney Andrew Murray said “My office, along with our dedicated and professional partners, is committed to ridding our community of fentanyl by holding drug dealers accountable for these untimely and extremely tragic deaths.”

After baby’s fentanyl death, Asheville mother found guilty of involuntary manslaughter

Read the original article on the Asheville Citizen Times website.

A Buncombe County jury found Samantha Lynn Higgins, 32, of Asheville, guilty of involuntary manslaughter after her child’s fentanyl-related death.
Data from a state taskforce shows child deaths by accidental poisoning — mainly caused by fentanyl — has increased statewide in the past few years and “remained high” in 2023.

ASHEVILLE – After a day of deliberation over a partially absent defendant, a Buncombe County jury found an Asheville mother guilty of involuntary manslaughter for her child’s fentanyl-related death — an issue a state taskforce said “remained high” in 2023.

Samantha Lynn Higgins, 32, of Asheville, was on trial in Buncombe County Superior Court after her 8-month-old daughter ingested or had contact with fentanyl while living in “an environment where the juvenile had access to and contact with” the drug, police said in an arrest warrant.

Asheville Police Department detectives began investigating on Sept. 8, 2022, when the child was taken to Mission Hospital. Three days later, the infant was pronounced dead.

The child’s autopsy says her cause of death was complications of blunt force injuries to the head, but fentanyl toxicity was “another significant contributing factor.” Blood sample tests during her hospitalization showed a “potentially lethal level of fentanyl,” and evidence of early organ failure was found during the autopsy, according to a copy obtained by the Citizen Times.

The child’s parents found her unresponsive early in the morning, according to the autopsy, which cites the Buncombe County Medical Examiner and APD. They took her to Mission Hospital’s Emergency Department, where resuscitation was successful, the autopsy said.

“It was reported to law enforcement that one of the parents asked hospital staff to use Narcan on the child during resuscitation, so a urine screen was performed,” which tested positive for fentanyl, the report said.

During APD’s investigation, drug paraphernalia was found “littered throughout” the apartment where the child lived, according to a news release from the Buncombe County District Attorney’s Office. The autopsy said the source of the child’s head injury was “unclear” at the time the report was written. Per department policy on case details, APD spokesperson Rick Rice declined to comment on the circumstances that may have led to the infant’s death.

Atlantic Beach man sentenced to 5 years for fentanyl-related death

An Atlantic Beach man has pled guilty to Death by Distribution of Fentanyl related to the overdose death of a 19-year-old.

Hayden James Hunter, 28, received an active sentence of 58-82 months in the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections.

Hunter was arrested on May 3, 2023, and charged with second-degree murder at the time.

The charge is related to the distribution of fentanyl, which resulted in the overdose death of Krista Olivia Taylor, 19, of Morehead City, on Oct. 16, 2022, per authorities.

Morehead City authorities say that during a narcotics investigation by these two agencies, Hunter was determined to be the source of fentanyl distribution within the community. As a result of that investigation, Hunter received additional charges by Morehead City Police: Sell of Schedule I Controlled Substance, Deliver of Schedule I Controlled Substance, Manufacturing of a Schedule I Controlled Substance and Conspiracy to Sell and Deliver a Schedule I Controlled Substance.

At the time of his arrest, Hunter was found to be in possession of heroin, methamphetamine and a firearm. Based on this evidence, the Carteret County Sheriff’s Office filed additional charges: Intent to Manufacture, Sell and Deliver Heroin and Possession with the Intent to Manufacture, Sell and Deliver Methamphetamine.

‘One final deadly dose:’ Fentanyl trafficker sentenced to 15 years after woman overdoses and dies

A Raleigh man is being sent to prison after officials from the U.S. Department of Justice say he assisted in distributing fentanyl to a 22-year-old woman who overdosed and died.

Treveris Montel Coward, also known as ‘Bad News,’ was sentenced to 15 years in prison after he pled guilty on October 4, 2022.

“Drug dealers are increasingly selling drugs laced with deadly fentanyl to make them stronger, more addictive, and more profitable. Now thousands of North Carolinians, including kids, are dying from overdoses,” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley.

According to court documents, the victim had previously suffered an overdose, and Coward rendered aid to help her survive. However, despite her recent overdose, he provided her with more fentanyl the following day — causing her to overdose and die.

Easley called Coward “the worst kind of coward” for “rendering aid to an overdose victim only to sell her one final deadly dose.”

He says he hopes narcotics dealers will pay attention to the 15-year sentence.

“If your drugs kill, you will pay a heavy price,” he said.

The sentencing of Coward is an example of the collaborative effort of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Raleigh Police Department in holding those who distribute deadly substances into our community responsible.

“We are grateful for our partnership. Coward distributed fentanyl to a vulnerable 22-year-old individual who was susceptible to an overdose, which led to her tragic death,” said Raleigh Chief of Police Estella Patterson. “[We] will not yield in the fight against fentanyl.”

Emily Robinson, the Alamance Co. Sheriff’s daughter has been found guilty of death by distribution

Emily Robinson was convicted of supplying the drugs that killed a man by overdose back in 2021.

ALAMANCE COUNTY, N.C. — A jury heard closing arguments Tuesday in the death by distribution case involving the Alamance County Sheriff’s daughter.

Emily Robinson faces several drug-related charges. The biggest among them —death by distribution.

Possession with intent to sell or deliver a controlled substance
Maintaining a building for sale of controlled substances
Possession of drug paraphernalia
Sale or delivery of controlled substance
Death by distribution

The jury found Robinson guilty of death by distribution. Court documents show she will serve and active sentence between 60 to 84 months.

Robinson is accused of supplying the fentanyl that killed Robert James Starner Jr. on September 15, 2021. The state medical examiner’s office determined Starner died from one or a combination of fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine.

The prosecution said witness interviews, phone messages, and GPS all indicated that Starner met up with Robinson to buy fentanyl right before he died.

The defense argued that it could have been other drugs that contributed to Starner’s death rather than the fentanyl that was allegedly supplied by Robinson.

Read the article and watch the video on the WFMY News2 website.

Garner Man Sentenced to 16 and a Half Years in Federal Prison for Trafficking Fentanyl Resulting in an Overdose Death

RALEIGH, N.C. – Reginald Webb, a 33-year-old resident of Garner, has been sentenced to 198 months in prison for distributing heroin and fentanyl in the Raleigh area. On April 11, 2017, Webb was the source of the fentanyl distributed to a 22-year-old woman who overdosed and died. Webb pled guilty on January 5, 2024. Webb’s co-defendant in this case, as well as an additional individual who was indicted separately, have previously pled guilty to charges and are awaiting sentencing.

“In 2023, there were more than 4,000 suspected overdose deaths in North Carolina. Drug dealers who lace fentanyl into their supply and prey on vulnerable individuals who have an addiction should know that the U.S. Attorney’s Office will use every tool available to seek justice for victims of fentanyl poisoning and their families” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “Webb’s actions show a complete disregard for human life motivated by sheer greed.”