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Press Release
Press Release
SCRANTON - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that James P. Cullen V, age 30, and Michelle L. Ferranti, age 31, both of Bartonsville, Pennsylvania, were indicted by a federal grand jury on various fentanyl and heroin trafficking charges, including for distributing fentanyl that resulted in the deaths of three individuals.
According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, the indictment alleges that the defendants conspired to distribute fentanyl and heroin between April 2021 and February 27, 2023. Cullen and Ferranti specifically were charged with distributing in excess of 400 grams of fentanyl, which is the equivalent of approximately 16,000 potentially lethal individual doses of fentanyl. The indictment also alleges that Cullen and Ferranti obtained fentanyl and heroin from other coconspirators located in New Jersey, marketed the narcotics on the Darkweb, and then used fabricated names to distribute the narcotics. Cullen and Ferranti allegedly mailed fentanyl and heroin to nearly every state in the United States, and to several foreign countries. As a result, it is alleged that three different individuals located in Vermont, Georgia, and Alaska overdosed and died from the fentanyl between October 2022 and February 2023. The individual in Alaska was a juvenile. In addition, Cullen and Ferranti are charged with distributing fentanyl and heroin on four other occasions between November 2022 and February 2023.
The indictment remained under seal until both defendants were arrested. Cullen and Ferranti remain in custody pending their trial.
“These indictments are a testament to the power of the interagency cooperation between HSI, the Postal Inspection Service, and the Pennsylvania State Police,” said Special Agent in Charge of HSI Philadelphia Edward Owens. “The agents and officers have removed two dangerous drug traffickers from our streets, who were responsible for three overdose deaths across the United States. The dismantlement of this drug trafficking organization ensures the safety of the general public. I commend HSI, their law enforcement partners, and the prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Middle District of Pennsylvania for their tireless work on this case.”
The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Pennsylvania State Police, the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General, Customs and Border Patrol, and the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General. Law enforcement agencies from Vermont, Georgia, Alaska, and French Customs also assisted with the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luisa H. Berti is prosecuting the case.
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.
This case was brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
The penalties under federal law for the most serious, overdose death charges are a minimum of 20 years and maximum life term of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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