Davenport Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Fentanyl Overdose Death

DOJ Press

DAVENPORT, Iowa – A Davenport man, Jarad Paul Postell, age 40, was sentenced on Wednesday, November 17, 2021, by United States District Court Chief Judge John A. Jarvey to 25 years in prison for Conspiracy to Manufacture, Distribute, and Possess with Intent to Distribute Fentanyl Purported to be Heroin Resulting in Death and Serious Bodily Injury. Following his imprisonment Postell was ordered to serve five years of supervised release, immediately pay $100 to the Crime Victims’ Fund, and pay $15,969.75 in restitution with his codefendants.

According to evidence at trial, Postell was identified after Davenport Police Department officers responded to Genesis West Hospital in reference to a drug overdose in September 2019. The victim was pronounced deceased upon arrival, and officers received the description of the individual and vehicle that had dropped the victim off. Members of the Bettendorf Police Department made contact with Postell and another individual shortly after the events at the hospital at a casino in Bettendorf. In a post-Miranda interview with law enforcement, Postell admitted to meeting the victim and conspiring with one of his co-defendants to obtain fentanyl purported to be heroin. In Postell’s presence, the victim used the purported heroin and began to drift in and out of consciousness. After a failed attempt at administering Narcan, Postell drove the victim to the hospital and dropped the victim off, where they were quickly pronounced deceased. On June 11, 2021, Postell was found guilty as charged after a jury trial.

United States Attorney Richard D. Westphal of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Drug Enforcement Administration and the Bettendorf Police Department (BPD) investigated the case.


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