Kenneth James Hughes Jr., 27, pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court in Harrisonburg to two counts of distribution of fentanyl. Law enforcement’s investigation revealed that Hughes sold drugs to a variety of individuals throughout the Western District of Virginia.
According to court documents, Hughes and his suppliers provided fentanyl to a user who died Oct. 23, 2020, due to an overdose. One of Hughes’ customers contacted him in regard to acquiring fentanyl in the form of “pressed pills,” namely, fentanyl pills made to appear like Oxycodone pills. Hughes contacted his supplier and arranged and facilitated a purchase of two pressed pills by the customer from his supplier.
The individual who purchased the pressed pills subsequently consumed the drugs and was found unresponsive the following morning at his home in Winchester. It was determined his death was the result of acute fentanyl intoxication.
Additionally, in November 2020, in Berryville, Hughes sold 22 capsules containing fentanyl for $300 to a confidential informant working on behalf of law enforcement.
Hughes is scheduled to be sentenced on July 19 and faces a sentence of six to 10 years in prison pursuant to a written plea agreement with the United States.
A U.S. District Court judge will determine the final sentence after consideration of the federal sentencing guidelines and the sentencing factors set forth by Congress.
The Northwest Virginia Regional Drug and Gang Task Force, the Winchester Police Department, the Frederick County Sheriff’s Office, the Virginia State Police, the Clarke County Sheriff’s Office and the Drug Enforcement Administration – Washington Division investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Zachary T. Lee is prosecuting the case.
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Crystal Graham
