Florida Man Imprisoned for Reselling Fentanyl

A Florida man was sentenced to 15 years in prison for distributing fentanyl and other drugs he purchased on the dark web.

According to the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida, the conviction and sentencing of 46-year-old Christopher Jon Bauer resulted from an anonymous tip received by investigators investigating Bauer's drug trafficking operation.
The informant told the investigators that every week, Bauer purchased two ounces of fentanyl through the dark web. He then had the drug packages mailed to an address controlled by his codefendant, Brittany Lyn Durkin. Bauer forced her to collect the drugs as payment for a debt she owed him. She collected the drug packages and took them to Bauer's residence from where they were cut and resold.
The investigators then contacted the USPIS and received records of packages mailed to the address. The investigators established that the address had received three packages shipped from an unknown address in California in July and August 2022.
The investigators then set up surveillance at a Post Office in Florida used to receive the drug packages. Bauer arrived at the post office in his red Cadillac SUV, with Durkin in the front passenger seat. Durkin walked into the post office and came out carrying a USPS Express package.
The investigators later tried to stop the vehicle for a traffic violation, but Bauer fled, resulting in a lengthy high-speed pursuit. To end the chase, the investigators disabled the vehicle.
The investigators arrested Bauer and Durkin and searched the vehicle. In the vehicle, the investigators found a white powdery substance in a clear plastic bag. They found a similar substance in a black vacuum-sealed bag in Bauer's possession. Tests by the DEA revealed that the investigators had seized 65 grams of fentanyl, and 12.5 grams of methamphetamine.
On being questioned, Durkin told the investigators that she had seen Bauer place fentanyl orders on the dark web and that she had collected 10 drug packages at the post office and 6 packages at her grandparent's home. A search of Bauer's phone revealed that he had received text messages confirming that the packages had arrived at the post office.
After receiving the drugs, Bauer mixed them with unknown substances and sold the resulting product as heroin. Durkin revealed that she and Bauer used a needle to consume the substance.
The investigators executed a search warrant at Bauer's residence on September 2, 2022. The search resulted in the seizure of several counterfeit Xanax pills and an undisclosed quantity of a white powdery substance that tested positive for fentanyl. They also seized empty pill capsules, two Narcan nasal sprays, a weighing scale, empty black vacuum-sealed bags, and other drug paraphernalia.
Bauer pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine in March 2023. US District Judge Aileen M. Cannon sentenced him to federal prison on May 22.