Fentanyl Dealer Linked To Fatal Teenage Overdose Sentenced

A fentanyl dealer tied to the death of a 16-year-old boy was sentenced this week to 12 years in federal prison, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton.

Eric Aden Herrera, 20, pleaded guilty in September 2022 to distribution of controlled substances to a person under 21. He was sentenced Tuesday by Senior U.S. District Judge Terry R. Means.

“Fentanyl, which is often hidden inside more innocuous-looking counterfeit pills, can snuff out a life in an instant,” said U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton. “This defendant claimed he was too afraid to try these pills himself, yet he was willing to sell them to an unsuspecting teenager. We must ensure our teens understand that drug dealers will resort to unscrupulous behavior in order to make a buck, and that unless prescribed by a doctor, no pill is safe. The Justice Department will not rest until fentanyl is no longer being sold on our streets.”

“Dealing and purchasing pills on the streets, regardless of what they ‘might’ look like, must stop,” said Eduardo A. Chávez, Special Agent in Charge of DEA Fort Worth.  “Illicit fentanyl has made its way into every one of our neighborhoods and you cannot take a chance.  The consequences are real.  While we cannot heal the damage already done to the victim’s family, we can continue to hold those like Mr. Herrera, and all others, accountable for the devastation selling drugs cause.”

According to plea papers, Mr. Herrera admitted he knowingly distributed counterfeit Percocet pills laced with fentanyl to a victim identified in the complaint as L.W.

He arranged the sale via Snapchat and then met the victim outside his girlfriend’s house to make the exchange.

Shortly after purchasing the pills, L.W. ingested two of them and fatally overdosed. His friend found him unresponsive in bed and called 911.  An autopsy revealed L.W. died of acute fentanyl toxicity.

In an interview with law enforcement, Mr. Herrera admitted he sold pills to L.W.

He said that after he got the pills from his dealer, he considered breaking one in half to try it with his girlfriend, but decided not to because he didn’t know about how they were made and was too scared to take them himself. 

A review of Mr. Herrera’s Snapchat history confirmed that he offered to sell L.W. Percocet and directed him to Mr. Herrera’s girlfriend’s street.

The Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Field Division and the Fort Worth Police Department conducted the investigation with assistance from the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Montes prosecuted the case.

Note: Illicitly produced, fentanyl-laced pills often look similar to legitimate prescription pills like Oxycontin or Percocet, but can pose significantly more danger. On the street, these pills are often referred to as “M30s” (a reference to the markings on some of the pills), “blues,” “perks,” “yerks,” “china girls,” or “TNT.” DEA research shows that six out of ten pills laced with fentanyl contain a potentially lethal dose. One pill can kill. For resources, visit https://www.dea.gov/onepill.