Dayton man sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for purchasing opioid cutting agent from China to distribute throughout Midwest

DAYTON, Ohio – Nykiha Astin, 42, of Dayton, was sentenced in U.S. District Court today to 135 months in prison for purchasing an opioid cutting agent from China.

According to court documents, Astin knowingly conspired with others to purchase at least one kilogram of metonitazene from a source in China. Astin intended to market the drug, what he termed “juice,” in the United States as a cutting agent that, when mixed with fentanyl, would boost the strength and yield of the fentanyl. Astin worked with others to distribute the “juice” in ounce quantities to drug dealers in the Midwest.

Astin was charged federally in May 2024 and pleaded guilty in April 2025. He is one of four defendants convicted in this case.

Dominick S. Gerace, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Andrew Lawton, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Detroit, announced the sentence imposed by Senior U.S. District Court Judge Thomas M. Rose. Deputy Criminal Chief Brent G. Tabacchi and Assistant United States Attorney Ryan A. Saunders are representing the United States in this case.

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