Michigan City Woman Sentenced to 63 Months in Prison

SOUTH BEND –Carissa McCoy, 42 years old, of Michigan City, Indiana, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Damon R. Leichty after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

McCoy was sentenced to 63 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release.

According to documents in the case, from June through mid-August 2021, McCoy conspired with others to distribute fentanyl in the Michigan City area. Her home, which she shared with one of her co-defendants, housed currency, firearms, and ammunition related to the conspiracy. In August 2021, McCoy and one of her co-defendants were stopped by law enforcement while traveling back to Michigan City. At that time, McCoy had over a kilogram of fentanyl pills on her person. 

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (including the Chicago Field Division, the Merrillville District Office, the Amarillo Texas Resident Office and the Albuquerque New Mexico District Office) with the assistance of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the LaPorte County Drug Task Force, an Indiana HIDTA Initiative, and the Michigan City Police Department.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kimberly L. Schultz and Joel Gabrielse.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

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