10,000 fentanyl pills seized in trafficking case; Detroit man sentenced to 22½ years

A Detroit man will serve 22½ years in federal prison over a fentanyl trafficking scheme that stretched from Michigan to Indiana, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Indiana reported. 

Devin Melvin, 33, was sentenced on April 23 in the case that involved fentanyl pills that were transported from the Detroit area to Michigan City, Indiana, authorities said.  

Prosecutors said he was the organizer and leader of a trafficking group, during which four Indiana men pleaded guilty to and were sentenced on various drug-related or firearms-related charges. The suspects worked on the distribution scheme from October 2023 to July 2024, in a case that authorities said involved "tens of thousands of pills" for transportation. 

Law enforcement had seized about 10,000 such fentanyl pills during the investigation. Melvin pleaded guilty to two counts of aiding and abetting the distribution of fentanyl. 

Agencies and teams working on this case included the Drug Enforcement Administration; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; the La Porte County (Indiana) Drug Task Force, sheriff's office and prosecutors' office; and the Michigan City (Indiana) Police Department. 

"The defendants in this case put profits over human life and helped contribute to an epidemic that is causing destruction in our cities and neighborhoods," said ATF Chicago Field Division Special Agent in Charge Christopher Amon. 

The prosecution effort was supported by the Homeland Security Task Force initiative and is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods.