CONCORD – Antwone Francis, 31, of Manchester, pleaded guilty in federal court to distributing fentanyl, Acting United States Attorney John J. Farley announced today.
According to court documents and statements made in court, on September 15, 2020, a cooperating source told a Nashua police detective that Francis was selling fentanyl in Nashua and provided pricing and a telephone number. On October 7, 2020, an undercover law enforcement officer called Francis and arranged to purchase fentanyl from Francis at a fast food restaurant in Merrimack.
Francis is scheduled to be sentenced on March 14, 2021.
“Fentanyl is a deadly substance that continues to cause grave damage in communities throughout New Hampshire,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley. “By identifying and prosecuting the drug dealers who are selling fentanyl and other dangerous drugs, we are seeking to improve public safety in the Granite State.”
This matter was investigated by the Nashua Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joachim H. Barth.
This case is part of Operation Synthetic Opioid Surge (S.O.S.). In July of 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced the creation of S.O.S., which is being implemented in the District of New Hampshire and nine other federal districts. The goal of S.O.S. is to combat the large number of overdoses and deaths associated with fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. In New Hampshire, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is focusing its efforts on prosecuting synthetic opioid trafficking cases arising in Hillsborough County, which includes Manchester and Nashua.
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