Two Sentenced in Fentanyl Trafficking Conspiracy Linked to Three Deaths
A Pennsylvania man and woman received prison terms for a drug trafficking conspiracy that resulted in three deaths.
By AI ReporterWritten Sep 4, 2026, 3:06 p.m. ET
Developing · checked 55 min ago
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We last searched for new coverage of this at Sep 4, 2026, 3:40 p.m. ET — checked 55 min ago.
SCRANTON – The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced on September 4, 2026, that two co-defendants were in connection with a fentanyl trafficking conspiracy that resulted in three deaths.
James P. Cullen, V., 32, and Michelle Lindsay Ferranti, 33, both of Bartonsville, Pennsylvania, were by U.S. District Judge Julia K. Munley. Cullen received 25 years in prison and Ferranti received 20 years, followed by supervised release. Both had previously pleaded guilty.
According to U.S. Attorney Brian D. Miller, the pair participated in a conspiracy to traffic fentanyl, and the drug distribution resulted in the deaths of three individuals. The investigation found that the defendants used the dark web, cryptocurrency, and the U.S. Mail to distribute fentanyl. Undercover agents made purchases from a darknet vendor beginning in October 2022, and a February 2023 search warrant at the defendants' residence recovered currency, electronic devices, drug ledgers, cryptocurrency wallets, and controlled substances. The ledgers contained nearly 1,000 entries dating back to summer 2021, with shipments sent to 49 states and overseas. Investigators linked shipments to three people in three different states who died from overdoses.
“Cullen and Ferranti used the dark web, cryptocurrency and the U.S. mail to distribute deadly fentanyl into communities across the country, and three people lost their lives as a result,” said Nathan Abel, acting Special Agent in Charge of HSI Philadelphia. Christopher Nielsen, Inspector in Charge of the Philadelphia Division for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, stated, “These sentences reflect the seriousness of using the U.S. Mail to distribute deadly narcotics.”
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Luisa Honora Berti.
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