HARRISONBURG, VIRGINIA -- A federal grand jury sitting in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Harrisonburg returned a one-count indictment this afternoon charging a local man with providing drugs that resulted in an overdose death.

Following an investigation led by the Harrisonburg Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration, the grand jury today charged Jean Paul Alvarado, 20, of Harrisonburg, Va., with one count of knowingly and intentionally distributing a detectable amount of heroin and that serious bodily injury and death resulted from the use of such substance. .

If convicted, Alvarado faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum possible penalty of life in prison and/or a fine of up to $1,000,000.

The investigation of the case was conducted by the Harrisonburg Police Department, the RUSH Drug Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant United States Attorney Grayson Hoffman and Special Assistant United States Attorney Louis Nagy are prosecuting the case for the United States.

A Grand Jury indictment is only a charge and not evidence of guilt. The defendant is entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the government to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

 

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