Cleveland man faces fentanyl, heroin, firearms charges

A Cleveland man was indicted in federal court for possessing with intent to distribute heroin, fentanyl and cocaine, as well as illegally operating a drug house and having a firearm, said Carole S. Rendon, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio.

Kristopher L. Courtney, 39, was named in the five-count indictment.

Courtney possessed fentanyl, heroin and cocaine on Sept. 2, with the purpose of the distributing the drugs. He also possessed a Mossberg 20-gauge shotgun despite numerous felony convictions which prohibited from having a firearm. He also controlled 2973 East 130^th Street in Cleveland for the purpose of distributing heroin, fentanyl and cocaine, according to the indictment.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violations.  In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and, in most cases, it will be less than the maximum.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Vasile Katsaros following an investigation by Homeland Security Investigations.

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.