SAN DIEGO, California òòò½ÊÓƵ” Danny Nunez, a San Diego resident, has been sentenced to 188 months in federal prison for supplying fentanyl that led to the fatal overdose of a 25-year-old woman from Escondido in 2024.
Nunez admitted to selling fentanyl to the victim, identified in court records as L.P., on September 11, 2024. The following day, her parents discovered her lifeless body in her bedroom, and emergency responders were unable to revive her, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office. On October 3, 2024, detectives from the Escondido Police Department, posing as L.P., contacted Nunez to purchase fentanyl. Nunez was arrested when he attempted to meet the undercover officers with two baggies containing a total of 8.9 grams of fentanyl.
"The defendant stole a young life and shattered a family by peddling deadly fentanyl," said U.S. Attorney Adam Gordon. "Todayòòò½ÊÓƵ™s sentence sends a clear and powerful message: Those who traffic in poison will be held fully accountable for the devastation they cause."
Shawn Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of HSI San Diego, emphasized the importance of partnerships in combating fentanyl distribution. "This investigation is an example of the strong partnerships between our state and local law enforcement partners that make up the San Diego Fentanyl Abatement and Suppression Team (FAST)," he said. "FAST is committed to ensuring the individuals who distribute fentanyl into our communities are held accountable."
David King, executive director of the San Diego and Imperial Valley High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, noted the impact of the investigation. "San Diego òòò½ÊÓƵ is a safer place after this investigation and successful prosecution," he stated.
Escondido Police Lt. Ryan Hicks highlighted the department's commitment to addressing fentanyl distribution. "The Escondido Police Department works aggressively to identify and hold accountable anyone who chooses to participate in the poisoning of our community through illicit fentanyl distribution," he said.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Van Demark, with the investigation led by Special Agents and Task Force Officers from the Fentanyl Abatement and Suppression Team (FAST), a multiagency task force established in August 2022. The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program, created by Congress in 1988, supports efforts to combat drug trafficking in critical regions, including San Diego òòò½ÊÓƵ.