Jefferson County Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Possessing Fentanyl
BEAUMONT, Texas – A Beaumont man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for possessing fentanyl in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent in Charge Daniel C. Comeaux of the Houston Division and Acting U.S. Attorney Abe McGlothin, Jr.
Joe Anthony Garcia, 28, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute fentanyl and was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Marcia A. Crone on January 23, 2025.
According to information presented in court, on May 19, 2022, law enforcement officers responded to a 9-1-1 call regarding a shooting on Avenue E in Beaumont. Officers found at least 16 bullet holes in the front door of the home and Garcia, a resident of the home, inside with gunshot wounds to his chest and hip. Officers also observed narcotics throughout the house in plain view. A search warrant was obtained, and additional narcotics were discovered, including over 1,200 pills in the bathroom. The pills were analyzed by the crime lab and found to contain approximately 156 grams of fentanyl.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has issued a Public Safety Alert warning Americans of the alarming increase in the lethality and availability of fake prescription pills containing fentanyl and methamphetamine. The Public Safety Alert coincides with the launch of DEA’s One Pill Can Kill Public Awareness Campaign to educate the public of the dangers of counterfeit pills and urges all Americans to take only medications prescribed by a medical professional and dispensed by a licensed pharmacist. The campaign aims to raise public awareness of a significant nationwide surge in fake pills that are mass-produced by criminal drug networks in labs, deceptively marketed as legitimate prescription pills, and are killing unsuspecting Americans at an unprecedented rate. For more information, please visit https://www.dea.gov/onepill.
This case was investigated by the Beaumont Police Department and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Quinn.