5 days Ago
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Four men were sentenced this week to decades in prison for trafficking large quantities of drugs in West Michigan, including thousands of fentanyl-laced pills designed to look like oxycodone. The sentencings of the four men, who are from Kent and Kalamazoo counties, were announced Wednesday, April 16, by Andrew Birge, Acting U.S.
Attorney for the Western District of Michigan. Authorities said the amount of fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine intended for distribution in these cases posed “a significant threat to the public.” Three of the men were found in possession of over 2-and-a-half kilograms of fentanyl, which is enough to kill over a million people who have little to no tolerance for the synthetic opioid drug, Birge said.
“Everyone in the community needs to be aware: one pill can kill,” Birge said. “We know that criminal drug networks are mass-producing fake pills and falsely marketing them as legitimate prescription pills to deceive the American public, much like the almost-20,000 counterfeit pills that Mr. Morrow and Mr.
Ruiz possessed and intended to sell.” Here are the names of the four men and their sentencings: Morrow was arrested after a traffic stop in March 2024 where he was found in possession of 10,863 counterfeit pills designed to look like oxycodone 30mg pills (also known as “M30s”), which contained over 1 kilogram of fentanyl, prosecutors said. “Fentanyl in and of itself is dangerous,” Chief.
U.S. District Judge Hala Y.
Jarbou said during Morrow’s sentencing - but when found in pill form, the fentanyl is “disguised,” making it even more dangerous. When police searched Morrow’s apartment, they found over 170 grams of cocaine, over $12,000 in U.S.
currency, amphetamine and morphine pills, and three firearms, according to the release. Ruiz was arrested in May 2024 when police found 8,558 counterfeit pills, which were also designed to look like M30s, in a storage unit in Kent County. Prosecutors said the pills contained over 900 grams of fentanyl, along with over 400 grams of heroin.
Davis was arrested after selling pounds of meth to a police informant in July 2024, according to the release. Police found 18 pounds of meth and 70 grams of cocaine in his Kalamazoo County apartment. At the time, Davis was serving a term of federal supervised release for a 2008 federal conviction for conspiracy to distribute cocaine, prosecutors said.
The court added 30 months to Davis’ prison sentence for violating the terms of his release. Also in July 2024, Hughes was found in possession of over 500 grams of fentanyl and over 100 grams of cocaine, located in a bedroom of his mother’s house in Kalamazoo County. State police say drug overdoses have caused nearly twice as many deaths as fatal car crashes in southwest Michigan.
“The Southwest Enforcement Team (SWET) is committed to saving lives and bringing accountability to the drug trafficking organizations that sell lethal narcotics in our communities, robbing us of the lives of our sons and daughters,” said Michigan State Police Detective First Lieutenant Rick Pazder. “The lengthy sentences given in these cases are just, and we applaud the United States Attorney’s Office for their diligent efforts and strong commitment to justice.”.
