Skip to main content
Press Release

Major Fentanyl Distributor Pleads Guilty to Drug Charges

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Virginia

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – A Hyattsville, Maryland man pleaded guilty today to participating in a conspiracy to distribute fentanyl, heroin, and crack cocaine in the Washington, D.C. area.

According to court documents, Donnell Leroy Williams, 54 (also known as “Bubbles”), his son, Antonio Donnell Shelton, 30 (“Little Bubbles”), and Demetrius Antonio Johnson, 37 (“Bake”), worked together to distribute several different types of controlled substances, including fentanyl, a highly dangerous narcotic. During the course of the conspiracy, Williams and his co-conspirators had the ability to obtain large quantities of fentanyl, and they routinely sold fentanyl and other highly addictive drugs to customers at locations in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C.

Beginning in May 2017, an undercover Fairfax County detective conducted several deals with Williams, eventually working his way to purchasing a ½ kilogram of fentanyl from Williams for $40,000. On November 7, 2017, the FBI arrested Williams and searched his apartment in Hyattsville. Inside the apartment, FBI agents found a large quantity of fentanyl pre-packaged for distribution. Agents also found large quantities of crack cocaine and marijuana, as well as a loaded handgun.

Williams pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl, 100 grams or more of heroin, and 28 grams or more of crack cocaine. He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison when sentenced on November 30. Williams is the last member of the drug conspiracy to plead guilty. Johnson and Shelton pleaded guilty to drug charges earlier this month.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Attorney General Jeff Sessions reinvigorated PSN in 2017 as part of the Department’s renewed focus on targeting violent criminals, directing all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to work in partnership with federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement and the local community to develop effective, locally-based strategies to reduce violent crime.

G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Matthew J. DeSarno, Special Agent in Charge, Criminal Division, FBI Washington Field Office, and Colonel Edwin C. Roessler Jr., Fairfax County Chief of Police, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys J. Tyler McGaughey and David A. Peters are prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information is located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:18-cr-30.

Contact

Joshua Stueve
Director of Communications
joshua.stueve@usdoj.gov

Updated August 28, 2018

Topics
Drug Trafficking
Opioids