Three Louisiana residents have pleaded guilty to federal charges related to fentanyl distribution and conspiracy, according to an announcement from United States Attorney David I. Courcelle. Jessica Portway, 42, of St. John the Baptist Parish; Rachel Portway, 23, of Jefferson Parish; and Tyler Saladino, 25, also of Jefferson Parish, entered their pleas before United States District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo.
Jessica Portway pleaded guilty on January 7, 2026. Rachel Portway and Tyler Saladino entered their pleas on January 21, 2026.
All three were charged with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. They also faced charges for distributing fentanyl. In addition, Rachel Portway and Saladino were charged with possession with intent to distribute fentanyl. Jessica Portway was separately charged with possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.
Court documents show that in August 2023 the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office began investigating an overdose death in Jefferson Parish. The investigation found that Saladino, Rachel Portway, Jessica Portway, and others conspired to distribute fentanyl in the Eastern District of Louisiana. As part of this activity, Saladino and Rachel Portway sold pills containing fentanyl to a victim in Jefferson Parish. Further investigation revealed that Rachel Portway had obtained these pills from Jessica Portway prior to the sale, and that Jessica Portway had received them from a source in California.
Authorities executed a search warrant at the residence shared by Saladino and Rachel Portway where they recovered additional pills containing fentanyl. Another search at Jessica Portway’s residence in LaPlace yielded 26 doses of LSD along with quantities of methamphetamine and fentanyl.
For each count of conspiracy and distribution (Counts 1 and 2), all three defendants face up to 20 years in prison, fines up to $1 million per count, and at least three years of supervised release. For Count 3—possession with intent to distribute—Saladino and Rachel Portway face similar penalties. For Count 4—possession with intent to distribute controlled substances—Jessica Portway faces a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years up to life imprisonment, a fine up to $10 million, and up to five years supervised release.
Each defendant is subject as well to a $100 mandatory special assessment fee per count.
Sentencing for Jessica Portway is scheduled for April 8, 2026; sentencing for Rachel Portway and Tyler Saladino will take place on April 22, 2026.
The Drug Enforcement Administration Fentanyl Overdose Response Team (FORT), the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office, and the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff’s Office investigated this case. Assistant United States Attorneys Briana Williams and Andre Jones are prosecuting the case as part of the Narcotics Unit.
