Four individuals from South Florida have been sentenced to federal prison for their involvement in distributing fentanyl and methamphetamine. The sentences were announced by U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Deanne L. Reuter of the DEA, Miami Field Division.

Gito St Fort, 35, from West Palm Beach, received a sentence of 320 months after pleading guilty to distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death. In December 2023, St Fort sold fentanyl that led to a victim's death while visiting his parents.

Anwar Hazzi, 36, from Sunny Isles Beach, was sentenced to 200 months for selling over 900 grams of fentanyl and 500 grams of meth between June 2023 and May 2024. The drugs were disguised as counterfeit prescription pills resembling oxycodone and Adderall. Hazzi pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession with intent to distribute controlled substances, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.

Samantha Yi, 31, from Lake Worth, was sentenced to 288 months for her role in selling fentanyl that resulted in the overdose death of a ten-month-old baby in March 2022. Her former boyfriend Darnell Julio Mendez also pleaded guilty to related charges and was sentenced to 360 months in October 2024.

The DEA Miami Field Division conducted the investigation with support from local law enforcement agencies including PBSO, BBPD, and the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam McMichael, Brian Ralston, and Shannon O’Shea Darsch prosecuted these cases.

The DEA’s National Drug Threat Assessment highlights the dangers posed by synthetic opioids like fentanyl and nitazenes which can be even more potent than fentanyl itself. These drugs have been linked to increasing numbers of fatal overdoses across various demographics due to their high potency.

Fentanyl is described as being up to fifty times stronger than heroin and one hundred times stronger than morphine. Even small amounts can be lethal according to the DEA’s One Pill Can Kill campaign which warns that just two milligrams can be fatal.

Statistics from the CDC indicate that synthetic opioids are responsible for most overdose deaths nationwide with over one hundred fifty fatalities occurring daily due to these substances. In Florida alone during 2022 there were more than five thousand six hundred twenty-two deaths attributed specifically to fentanyl-related overdoses.

Further information on this issue is available through resources provided by state health departments as well as federal agencies like the CDC and DEA.