Washington Man Sentenced to Prison for Trafficking 100,000 Fentanyl Pills

MINNEAPOLIS – A Washington man has been sentenced to 72 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for possession with intent to distribute tens of thousands of fentanyl pills, announced U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger.

According to court documents, during the early morning hours of August 31, 2022, Bloomington police officers were investigating a report of suspected fraud at an area hotel. The officers encountered Marcus Trice, 38, of Lakewood, Washington, and placed him under arrest for his suspected involvement in the financial fraud scheme. Officers learned that Trice had flown to the Twin Cities that night from Seattle, Washington. During a subsequent search of Trice’s belongings, officers found eleven large vitamin bottles wrapped in clothing inside his suitcase. The vitamin bottles were filled with over 100,000 round blue “M-Box” or “M-30” fentanyl pills.

On January 25, 2024, Trice pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. He was sentenced yesterday in U.S. District Court by Judge Michael J. Davis.

This case is the result of an investigation conducted by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bloomington Police Department.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Allen A. Slaughter prosecuted the case.