Another Carrollton Fentanyl Dealer Sentenced to Prison

One of the drug dealers responsible for at least one of the juvenile fentanyl overdose deaths in Carrollton last year has been sentenced to prison, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas.

On Monday, Cristian Lopez, 24, was sentenced to 96 months in federal prison for conspiracy to contribute a controlled substance after she pleaded guilty in July. The Lopez sentence comes just after one of her conspirators, Lizbeth Prieto, 19, was sentenced to 84 months in federal prison for distribution of a controlled substance to a person under 21.

The news release stated that Lopez and Prieto “supplied fentanyl pills to a 15-year-old Carrollton girl who fatally overdosed.” The 15-year-old, identified as “J.G." in court documents, was a student at Newman Smith High School in Carrollton.

“Family members called 911 when they found J.G. unresponsive, face down on her bed on Tuesday, June 13 [2023]. She was transported to the hospital and pronounced deceased shortly thereafter,” the news release stated. “Inside the child’s bedroom room, agents found ten counterfeit Percocet pills inscribed M/30, which later tested positive for fentanyl. On her Instagram, they found communications between the girl and Ms. Prieto from approximately 24 hours before the death. In messages, Ms. Prieto allegedly offered to sell J.G. 13 fentanyl pills for $100 dollars (sic), confirmed she could pay with cash, and asked for her address. A short while later, Ms. Prieto allegedly advised J.G. that she was pulling up to the home to deliver the pills.”

Lopez and Prieto are two of many who were arrested for their roles in dealing fentanyl to students in the Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD last year. A February 2023 Dallas Morning News report broke the news that three CFISD juveniles had died from fentanyl poisoning and at least six others had been hospitalized for fentanyl overdoses. More deaths and hospitalizations would follow in Carrollton in 2023, including incidents where students were found unresponsive with apparent opioid overdose symptoms on school grounds. According to investigators, in most cases, the pills were counterfeit opioids made with fentanyl, but not marketed as such.

The sentences for Lopez and Prieto are not the most severe punishments handed down in connection to the Carrollton deaths and overdoses, however. In May, Julio Gonzalez, 19, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute a Schedule II controlled substance, and Luis Navarrete was sentenced to 20 years.

“Selling poison in the form of fentanyl to our youth is one of the most treacherous and evil ways to hurt our community,” said Eduardo A. Chavez, Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Dallas Field Division in the news release. “To all of those who still continue to traffic fentanyl pills: DEA Dallas and our law enforcement partners such as Carrollton PD will find you and hold you accountable for your selfish actions. The safety of our families and community depends on it.”