United States Drug Enforcement Administration

FRESNO, Calif. — Adrian Rodriguez Cardenas, 22, of Bakersfield, was sentenced today to six years in prison for conspiring to distribute fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert and Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Wade R. Shannon announced.

According to court documents, on Jan. 11, 2021, Cardenas negotiated with and sold to an undercover law enforcement officer counterfeit OxyContin/oxycodone pills containing fentanyl. Cardenas thereafter negotiated a second sale of pills to the undercover officer. On Jan. 19, 2021, co-defendant Keisean Rockmore, 27, also of Bakersfield, drove Cardenas and a third person to a fast-food restaurant parking lot in Bakersfield to meet with and sell to the undercover officer 1,000 fentanyl-laced pills for the negotiated price of $2,900. At least one of the vehicle occupants possessed a firearm during the meeting, which he pointed at the undercover officer during the transaction. Rockmore then fled in his vehicle with Cardenas and the other passenger to a nearby apartment complex, where they exited the vehicle and attempted to elude pursuing law enforcement officers. After law enforcement officers found and arrested Cardenas, Rockmore and the other accomplice at the apartment complex, they discovered nearby a loaded firearm and more than 50 counterfeit OxyContin/oxycodone pills.

On April 29, 2022, co-defendant Rockmore was sentenced to 21 months in prison for possessing with intent to distribute fentanyl.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Kern County Sherriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher D. Baker and Justin J. Gilio are prosecuting the case.

This case was prosecuted as part of the joint federal, state, and local Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) Program, the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction efforts. PSN is an evidence-based program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry programs for lasting reductions in crime.