Arkansas Resident Sentenced For Federal Drug Crime

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma announced that Raylon Sharrod Triplett-Armstrong, age 33, of Fort Smith, Arkansas, was sentenced to 63 months in prison for one count of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl.

The charges arose from investigations by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the McAlester Police Department.

On February 22, 2023, Triplett-Armstrong pleaded guilty to one count of possession with the intent to distribute 40 grams or more of a mixture or substance that contained a detectable amount of fentanyl.  According to investigators, Triplett-Armstrong traveled from Fort Smith, Arkansas, to McAlester, Oklahoma, intending to conduct a drug transaction. When Triplett-Armstrong arrived in McAlester, officers initiated a traffic stop and a search of the vehicle revealed over 900 counterfeit oxycodone pills containing a detectable amount of fentanyl.

“The illegal distribution of counterfeit pills containing fentanyl poses a tremendous danger to our communities,” said United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson.  “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with our local, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement partners to vigorously investigate and prosecute offenders.” 

The Honorable Ronald A. White, Chief Judge in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, presided over the hearings.  Triplett-Armstrong will remain in custody of the U.S. Marshal pending transportation to a designated United States Bureau of Prisons facility to serve a non-paroleable sentence of incarceration.

Assistant United States Attorney Ryan Bondura represented the United States.