PIKE COUNTY MAN SENTENCED TO LIFE IN FEDERAL PRISON FOR SMUGGLING FENTANYL INTO JAIL, THAT RESULTED IN OVERDOSE DEATH
JURY CONVICTED THE DRUG DEALER WITH LONG CRIMINAL HISTORY LAST YEAR, NEARLY A YEAR AFTER 2021 OVERDOSE INCIDENT; JUDGE SAID ENOUGH EVIDENCE EXISTED TO LINK TO SECOND OVERDOSE DEATH
FEBRUARY 9, 2023 – written by WADE QUEEN
According to evidence at his trial, on October 12,2021, Justin Bryant smuggled drugs into the Pike County Detention Center and distributed them.
The drugs contained fentanyl and para-fluorofentanyl, and their use resulted in the death of another inmate in the jail.
At sentencing of Justin Bryant, the federal judge made a finding and determined that there was reliable evidence connecting Bryant to another overdose in August of 2021.
Despite that deadly incident, the judge stated that federal prosecutors gave evidence which also documented that, even after the overdose death of the victim on October 12, 2021, staff with the Pike County Detention Center and Pikeville Police Department prevented Justin Bryant from bringing drugs into the jail on two additional occasions.