Man admits smuggling fentanyl into Campbell County jail; feds say 2 inmates overdosed
A man admitted to smuggling fentanyl into the Campbell County Detention Center while being detained at the jail, which federal agents say resulted in the overdoses of two other inmates.
Jonathan Stanley, 40, pleaded guilty in federal court in Covington on Wednesday to a count of distribution of fentanyl resulting in serious bodily injury, the only charge stemming from his March 2023 indictment.
Stanley entered an open plea, which means he didn’t negotiate a deal with prosecutors. However, he will still receive credit for accepting responsibility and will not have to give up certain rights.
His attorney, Eric Eckes, declined to comment on the plea when reached by The Enquirer on Thursday.
Campbell County jail staff were notified on Nov. 15, 2022, of an issue inside one of the cells, where they discovered an inmate suffering from an apparent overdose, a Drug Enforcement Administration special agent wrote in an affidavit.
He collapsed and stopped breathing.
The inmate was given Narcan, a medication that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose, and taken to a local hospital for treatment, according to the document.
A short time later, another inmate in the same cell also began experiencing opioid symptoms and was likewise given Narcan by jail staff and taken to the hospital.
Investigators learned that the two men had consumed a substance, later identified as fentanyl, that was given to them by Stanley with the expectation he would receive payment, the special agent said.
Stanley had been arrested and booked into jail for a violation of the conditions of his supervised release stemming from a federal conviction for conspiracy to distribute heroin. Upon his arrest, officers confiscated several thousand dollars from Stanley but neglected to perform a full search.
According to the document, federal agents uncovered security footage that showed Stanley in the hallway outside the cell. He removed an item from the back of his pants and gave it to one of the inmates, who seemingly concealed it in his palm just before being searched by jail staff.
Video of the two inmates in their cell showed them appear to snort the substance shortly before medical staff members were called.
If jail staff hadn't administered Narcan to the two men, they could've gone into respiratory arrest, which "would have caused permanent injury and death if not reversed by the medical treatment offered to each of them," the special agent said.
Stanley was indicted in connection with one of those overdoses, court records show. Eckes said the inmate has since made a full recovery.
After questioning other inmates, investigators learned Stanley admitted to others that he was carrying drugs while being housed in an isolation cell and that he planned to distribute them once he was placed in the general population, the special agent said.
The overdoses happened the same day Stanley was released from isolation and placed into a cell adjacent to the two inmates.
Court records show Stanley is scheduled to appear in court on June 6 for a sentencing hearing before U.S. District Judge David Bunning.
The charge Stanley pleaded guilty to carries a minimum prison term of 20 years and a maximum of life, or a minimum of life in prison for those previously convicted of a violent felony or serious felony drug offense.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Campbell County jail overdoses: Man admits smuggling fentanyl
