DEA agents arrest Tucson woman on federal charges for selling fentanyl resulting in three overdoses, one victim died
PHOENIX – DEA Phoenix Division Special Agent in Charge Doug Coleman announces the arrest of Jocelyn Lopez-Sanchez, a 22-year old Tucson woman who is now in custody following an indictment obtained by DEA agents Wednesday afternoon. Lopez-Sanchez was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 1, 2019.
The indictment and arrest of Lopez-Sanchez is the result of a DEA and Tucson Police Department investigation into the overdoses of three individuals, one who later died, on Nov. 1, 2018, in Tucson, Ariz. Lopez-Sanchez was identified through the investigation as the alleged supplier of fentanyl that resulted in one victim’s death, and serious injury to the two remaining victims.
The DEA in Arizona has developed an initiative to review overdose fatalities in an effort to bring street dealers to face federal charges for supplying drugs resulting in the death of an individual—a crime that, under federal law, carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and up to a maximum of life in prison. In addition to these charges, Lopez-Sanchez also faces two counts related to the alleged importation of fentanyl from Mexico.
Lopez-Sanchez turned herself in to federal agents without incident. This investigation was conducted by the DEA’s Tucson District Office and the Tucson Police Department and will be prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.
An indictment is simply a method by which a person is charged with criminal activity and raises no inference of guilt. An individual is presumed innocent until competent evidence is presented to a jury that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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