A Colorado man was sentenced to two decades in prison for selling fentanyl to a Texas resident who ultimately overdosed on the drug, federal court records show.
U.S. District Judge David Counts sentenced Douglas Christopher Steele, 54, of Denver, to 20 years in prison on one count of distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death or serious bodily injury on May 9 in an Alpine, Texas federal court, Acting U.S. Attorney Margaret Leachman for the Western District of Texas announced in a news release.
He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release after he serves his prison term, court records show.
Steele was indicted on May 9, 2024, in Pecos, Texas, on two counts related to fentanyl distribution. He was arrested on May 11, 2024, in Denver. He pleaded guilty to the charge on Nov. 18.
A charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl against Steele was dismissed as part of a plea agreement with federal prosecutors, court records show.
Man found dead after taking pills sold by Steele
Homeland Security Investigations agents and Texas Department of Public Safety’s Criminal Investigation Division troopers began an investigation after an Alpine man, who is not named in court documents, was found unresponsive in the restroom at his job. The man was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The investigation found envelopes at the man’s home that had been mailed from Steele’s Colorado home, the news release states.
Investigators obtained text messages between the man and Steele. In a Jan. 29, 2024, text message, Steele agreed to mail 20 fentanyl pills to the man’s work address.
Steele told the man that he had mailed the package of fentanyl on Feb. 2, the news release states. The man’s co-worker received the FedEx delivery on Feb. 5, 2024.
Steele and the man continued to talk through text messages, including about how strong the fentanyl was. The man messaged Steele just after midnight on Feb. 6, 2024, telling Steele that he nearly overdosed, the news release states.
Later that morning, the man was found unresponsive in the restroom at work.
Aaron Martinez covers the criminal justice system for the El Paso Times. He may be reached at amartinez1@elpasotimes.com or on X/Twitter @AMartinezEPT.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Colorado man sentenced to 20 years in prison for Alpine man’s fentanyl overdose death
Reporting by Aaron Martinez, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
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