Philadelphia man gets big prison time for fentanyl drug mill

A Philadelphia man is headed to prison for his role in operating a fentanyl drug mill.

40-year-old Emmanuel F. Almonte Mejia had previously pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. On Thursday, he was sentenced to five years behind bars.

Federal authorities say in February 2022, Mejia and his co-conspirators operated a drug mill in which he and the others produced large quantities of bulk fentanyl for redistribution.

In total, law enforcement recovered nearly six kilos of fentanyl which was produced in the mill.

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Those co-conspirators, 32-year-old Hector Luiz De La Cruz Nunez and 37-year-old Loanny F. Duran Hiciano have both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute fentanyl. Nunez was sentenced to 60 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release; Hiciano awaits sentencing.

In addition to the prison term, Mejia was sentenced to three years of supervised release.

Acting U.S. Attorney Vikas Khanna thanked special agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations Newark, HSI Philadelphia, and the New Jersey State Police for their work in this case.