Transcontinental Fentanyl Trafficker 'Fat Bags' Sentenced to 128 Months in Wide-Ranging Narcotics Conspiracy
WASHINGTON — Karon Olufemi Blalock, 32, of Alexandria, Virginia, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court to 128 months in federal prison for his role in a transcontinental narcotics trafficking conspiracy that smuggled tens of thousands of fentanyl pills from California to the D.C. area, announced U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Blalock, also known as “Fat Bags,” pleaded guilty on Oct. 16, 2025, before Judge Colleen Kollar‑Kotelly to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. In addition to the 128‑month prison term, Judge Kollar‑Kotelly ordered Blalock to serve five years of supervised release. Federal prosecutors had requested a 135‑month sentence. Blalock is the 21st defendant to be sentenced in connection with this case.
According to court documents, from August 2020 through November 9, 2023, Blalock participated in a multi‑kilogram fentanyl trafficking operation that moved counterfeit oxycodone pills from Southern California to metropolitan Washington.
Blalock traveled dozens of times to Los Angeles to purchase bulk quantities of fentanyl‑laced counterfeit pills and smuggle them back to the District either through luggage and carryon bags or via commercial mail carriers. He coordinated directly with a Los Angeles‑based trafficker and relied on social media accounts to redistribute the dangerous counterfeit pills to D.C. customers.
For example, Blalock traveled to Los Angeles on Dec. 10, 2022. That same day, the Los Angeles‑based supplier sent a coded text message: “I got you at 50 cents.” Blalock responded by “loving” the message — signaling his agreement to the price of 50 cents per pill. The next day, the supplier texted: “When you tryna link?” Blalock replied: “Hilton Pasadena. Pull up on me.” The two men later completed the transaction.
Court filings further reveal that Blalock expanded his criminal activities by utilizing SBA-approved bank account credentials and Social Security number in order to submit a falsified tax form claiming $100,000 in fraudulent sole proprietorship earnings. Blalock in turn received two Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan disbursements of $20,833 each. Blalock separately obtained $22,224 in pandemic-related unemployment insurance funds, diverting critical public resources intended for legitimate individuals in need. Blalock in turn used these fraudulently obtained funds in furtherance of his fentanyl trafficking in the District of Columbia.
Joining in today’s announcement were Special Agent in Charge Cindy M. Marx of the Drug Enforcement Administration Washington Division, Postal Inspector in Charge Damon Wood of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Inspector General Anthony D’Esposito for the U.S. Department of Labor, and Interim Chief Jeffery Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department.
The prosecutions in this case followed a joint investigation by the DEA Washington Division and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Washington Division, in partnership with the Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General, Metropolitan Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
The investigation received additional support from the DEA’s Los Angeles, San Diego, and Riverside Field Divisions, the FBI Washington Field Office, and the Charles County, Maryland, Sheriff’s Office. Valuable assistance was also provided by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Central and Southern Districts of California, the Eastern District of Virginia, and the District of Maryland.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Matthew W. Kinskey, Solomon S. Eppel, and Iris Y. McCranie of the Violent Crime and Narcotics Trafficking Section.
