Lincoln Man Sentenced for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl

United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that Joe Paul Shultz, age 40, of Lincoln, Nebraska, was sentenced August 16, 20224 in federal court in Omaha, Nebraska for conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. Chief United States District Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. sentenced Shultz to 114 months’ imprisonment. There is no parole in the federal system. After Shultz is released from prison, he will begin a 3-year term of supervised release.

On April 27, 2020, Shultz delivered fentanyl to a victim, which contributed to an overdose death. Law enforcement investigated the overdose and located Shultz as the suspect.  An autopsy was conducted on the victim, and the cause of death was buprenorphine and fentanyl toxicity.  Law enforcement contacted Shultz, who admitted to the delivery of two fentanyl pills to the victim before the overdose.  Law enforcement could not locate the source of the buprenorphine as it was not prescribed by a doctor.  Shultz was also known to sell fentanyl pills to other individuals in the Lincoln, Nebraska metro area.

This case was investigated by the Lincoln Police Department.