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Navy Sailors Sold Fentanyl Pills, Led to Death
17 Sep
Summary
- Two former Navy members pleaded guilty to selling fentanyl-laced pills.
- One sailor died of an overdose from pills sold by the defendants.
- The accused continued drug sales even after a fatal overdose.
Two former U.S. Navy service members, Bailey Szramowski and Johnnese Poomaihealani, have pleaded guilty in federal court in San Diego to selling counterfeit oxycodone pills laced with fentanyl. These illicit substances were sold to active-duty sailors stationed in San Diego, including during deployments.
One sailor, identified by the initials A.N., died in January 2023 from acute fentanyl intoxication after ingesting pills purchased from Szramowski in December 2022. Despite this fatality, Szramowski sold three more pills to another sailor, C.L., ten days later. This second sailor survived a suspected overdose.
Szramowski and Poomaihealani also attempted to conceal their involvement by asking the deceased sailor's relatives to delete messages and instructing the hospitalized sailor to mislead authorities about the pills' origin.
Szramowski faces up to 40 years in federal prison and a $5 million fine, while Poomaihealani faces up to 20 years and a $1 million fine. Sentencing is scheduled for December.
