Pittsburgh Drug Conspirator Sentenced to Nearly 5 Years in Prison

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A former resident of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was sentenced in federal court on Friday to a term of imprisonment of four years and nine months, to be followed by three years of supervised release, on charges of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute an analogue of fentanyl, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.

Senior United States District Court Judge David S. Cercone imposed the sentence on Calvin Armstrong, 32, formerly of Pittsburgh, PA.

According to information presented to the court, from May 2017 to August 2017, Calvin Armstrong conspired with others to conspire to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cyclopropyl fentanyl, an analogue of fentanyl. Lynell Guyton purchased large quantities of fentanyl analogues from overseas purveyors, which he distributed in Western Pennsylvania.

From late August 8th through the early morning of August 9th, Armstrong packaged large amounts of cyclopropyl fentanyl with other individuals. On August 9, 2017, law enforcement executed a search warrant at 7 Bond Street. Guyton was found on the first floor along with Armstrong and two other individuals. Large amounts of narcotics and packaging paraphernalia were present in the house. A table with powder narcotics was overturned during the initial SWAT entry into the home, causing large amounts of opioids to become airborne. SWAT officers exposed to the airborne narcotics were sent to Mercy for evaluation–everyone was medically cleared and no one was harmed. Law enforcement also executed a search warrant at 1268 Lakewood Avenue and found another individual and opioids at the residence. A total of 235 grams of cyclopropyl fentanyl was recovered from both residences. Armstrong admitted to packaging narcotics.

Assistant United States Attorneys Rachael L. Dizard and Shanicka L. Kennedy prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE)/ Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), assisted by the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Pennsylvania State Police and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, including the Pittsburgh Police SWAT Team, conducted the investigation leading to the prosecution of this case.