CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A 21-year-old man has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Corpus Christi for selling fentanyl-laced pills that killed someone, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani with the United States Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Texas.
Ricardo Julyan Kross Rios, also known as Kross, has been charged with delivery of fentanyl resulting in death and possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute. His first court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Mitchel Neurock is set for Friday morning at the U.S. District Court in Corpus Christi.
The indictment alleges that Rios sold the fentanyl-laced drugs to the person on Dec. 9, 2022, resulting in the victim's death. Rios was arrested on March 23 after an investigation.
If convicted of distributing fentanyl causing death, Rios faces a maximum sentence of life in prison and a fine of up to $1 million.
He also faces a 20-year maximum sentence for the possession of fentanyl with the intention to distribute.
"The Drug Enforcement Administration led the cooperative law enforcement effort targeting fentanyl with the assistance of Homeland Security Investigations, Jim Wells County Sheriff’s Office and police departments in Corpus Christi, Aransas Pass and Mathis," the statement said.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert D. Thorpe Jr. is prosecuting this case.
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