Major Supplier in Juvenile Fentanyl Overdose Case Pleads Guilty

A major drug trafficker linked to a string of juvenile fentanyl overdoses in north Texas pleaded guilty today to multiple drug crimes, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton.

Jason Xavier Villanueva, 22, was charged via criminal complaint in February and indicted later that same month. On Tuesday, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl and distribution of fentanyl to a person under 21 years of age.

“Over and over, Mr. Villanueva put poison into the hands of teenagers who could not possibly comprehend the inherent risks. Not even the news of multiple teenage deaths deterred this defendant,” said U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton. “The Justice Department will not rest until every person who peddled pills to these children, directly or indirectly, is behind bars.  We have seen these kids’ faces – vibrant in life, heartrending in death – and we will not forget.”

“The men and women of the DEA Dallas are pleased Mr. Villanueva has pled guilty and will answer for the crimes he has committed,” said Special Agent in Charge Eduardo A. Chávez.  “Unfortunately we cannot undo the damage already done to our community, but we can use this to prove once again that drug trafficking cannot be tolerated and we must all stand together to rid our communities of the dangers of illicit drugs like fentanyl.”

In plea papers, Mr. Villanueva admitted he distributed more than 200,000 fentanyl pills to north Texas customers over the course of five or six months, at a rate of about 40,000 pills per month. He sold the pills – round blue tablets marked M-30 – to a network of juvenile and adult dealers in Carrollton, who went on to sell to friends, classmates, and other customers. He often advertised on Instagram.

Mr. Villanueva, through his lower-level dealers, is tied to as many as ten overdoses of nine teenagers in the Carrollton Farmer’s Branch Independent School District. The victims, all middle and high school students, ranged in age from 13 to 17.

Following the arrest of two of these lower-level dealers – Eduardo Navarrete and Magaly Cano – Mr. Villanueva  posted on social media, “Only thing that’s gonna stop us is feds.”

Mr. Villanueva is the third defendant charged in the wake of the Carrollton / Flower Mound juvenile overdoses to enter a guilty plea. Magaly Cano and Stephen Paul Brinson pleaded guilty last month; five other defendants, including Mr. Navarrete, have been charged but not yet convicted. (All are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.)

Mr. Villanueva now faces up to 40 years in federal prison. His sentencing is slated for Wednesday, Oct. 4.

The Drug Enforcement Administration’s Dallas Field Office and the Carrollton Police Department conducted the investigation with the assistance of School Resource Officers from the Carrollton – Farmer’s Branch Independent School District and the Lewisville Independent School District. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rick Calvert and Phelesa Guy are prosecuting 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.