ST. LOUIS – A man from Hazelwood on Tuesday admitted selling fentanyl that killed a Lake St. Louis man last year.
Stephen Paul Jefferson Jr., 37, pleaded guilty in front of U.S. District Judge Sarah E. Pitlyk to a felony charge of distribution of fentanyl.
Jefferson admitted selling the fentanyl that killed the Lake St. Louis man just hours after the man bought the drug from Jefferson at the Red Roof Inn in Maryland Heights on July 12, 2021, the plea agreement says.
Investigators searched Jefferson’s hotel room the next day and found fentanyl in bags and capsules and a digital scale. Jefferson was arrested and admitted selling drugs, despite knowing “bad things can happen,” including “People can overdose or get bad dope,” his plea agreement says.
Jefferson is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 4. The drug distribution charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $1,000,000. Both prosecutors and Jefferson’s lawyer have agreed to recommend a 12-year prison sentence, but Judge Pitlyk will ultimately determine Jefferson’s fate.
The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the St. Charles County Regional Drug Task Force.