Vancouver, Washington man sentenced to 10 years in prison for drug trafficking while possessing firearms

Tacoma – A 41-year-old Vancouver, Washington, man was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Tacoma to 10 years in prison for drug distribution and firearms crimes, announced U.S. Attorney Tessa M. Gorman. Joseph Anthony Cannarozzi was identified in May 2021 as the source of potentially deadly fentanyl pills. The ensuing investigation determined Cannarozzi was dealing fentanyl pills and also selling anabolic steroids through the mail. At the sentencing hearing Chief U.S. District Judge David G Estudillo said, “This case is not about a statistic, it is about an individual who passed away from a mix of substance you sold him for money…. Controlled substances create real devastation and turmoil for real people.”

“Even after his pills were connected to a death, Mr. Cannarozzi, continued to deal fentanyl. Some 10,000 pills were seized from his home,” said U.S. Attorney Gorman. “That conduct, coupled with his possession of multiple firearms, justifies this significant prison sentence.”

According to records filed in the case, in May 2021 pills found with the victim of an overdose death were linked back to Cannarozzi prompting an investigation from the Clark County Sherriff’s Office. Officers surveilled Cannarozzi’s home and saw drug customers repeatedly coming to the home for suspected drug transactions. In October 2021, a search warrant at Cannarozzi’s home resulted in the seizure of 10,000 fentanyl pills made to look like prescription medication, as well as suspected steroids and records on drug distribution. Law enforcement also seized six firearms from the home.

The search revealed that Cannarozzi operated a business called “Locked and Loaded” that sold steroids and other medications via the internet. Financial records indicate that more than $1 million was processed through those business accounts.

Cannarozzi was charged federally in August 2022. Cannarozzi pleaded guilty to possession of controlled substances with intent to distribute and possessing firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking crimes on March 6, 2024.

In asking for the ten-year sentence Assistant United States Attorney Kristine Foerster wrote to the court, “The nation’s ongoing fentanyl-death epidemic would not be possible without suppliers like Cannarozzi. He trafficked in large quantities of deadly fentanyl pills disguised as prescription drugs. He did this despite knowing the pills could kill. He sold those pills to (the victim) and other customers, and he kept selling the pills even after they caused (the victim’s) death.”

The case was investigated by the Clark County Sherriff’s Office, the Vancouver Police Department, Homeland Security Investigation (HSI), and the United States Postal Service.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kristine Foerster.