Baltimore Man Sentenced to Almost 14 Years in Federal Prison for Distribution of a Fentanyl Analogue That Resulted in the Death of a Victim

 Defendant Sold Customers Heroin, Crack Cocaine, and the Fentanyl Analogue that Killed the Victim in this Case

Baltimore, Maryland – U.S. District Judge Ellen L. Hollander today sentenced Shannon Dorrell Marshall, a/k/a Cake, age 43, of Baltimore, Maryland, to 165 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, for two counts of distribution of controlled substances, specifically a fentanyl analogue and heroin.  A victim died as a result of Marshall’s drug distribution.  Fentanyl analogues are chemical compounds designed to have effects similar to fentanyl and can be just as deadly.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Assistant Special Agent in Charge Orville O. Greene of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Baltimore District Office; Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey R. Gahler; Colonel Woodrow W. Jones III, Superintendent of the Maryland State Police; Chief Henry Trabert of the Aberdeen Police Department; Chief Charles Moore of the Bel Air Police Department; Chief Teresa Walter of the Havre de Grace Police Department; and Harford County State’s Attorney Albert Peisinger.

According to Marshall’s guilty plea, on May 11, 2017, Harford County Sheriff’s Office detectives went to a home in Abingdon, Maryland, where a victim had been reported dead.  An autopsy determined that the victim died of 4-Fluoroisobutyryl fentanyl and carfentanil intoxication.  Detectives seized the victim’s phone and recovered messages from the victim arranging to purchase drugs from an individual known as “Cake,” which is Marshall’s alias, and learned that Marshall was the source of the drugs sold to the victim.  Further review of the phone revealed that the victim had been purchasing gel caps of heroin from “Cake” since October 2016.

As detailed in the plea agreement, on June 15, 2017, detectives conducted surveillance of Marshall and observed him engage in a hand-to-hand drug transaction.  When detectives exited their vehicles to approach Marshall, he fled.  Detectives were able to stop the person who had just purchased drugs from Marshall.  The drugs were determined to be three gel caps of heroin and crack cocaine.  On June 21, 2017, Harford County Task Force detectives executed a search warrant at Marshall’s residence and seized a bag containing 2.8 grams of cocaine.  Marshall was arrested and agreed to waive his rights and speak to detectives, subsequently admitting to selling drugs to the overdose victim, as well as to the individual detectives stopped on June 15, 2017.

United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the DEA, the Harford County Sheriff’s Office and the other members of Harford County Narcotics Task Force, comprised of members of the Harford County Sheriff's Office, Maryland State Police, Aberdeen Police Department, Bel Air Police Department, Havre de Grace Police Department, and the Harford County State’s Attorney’s Office, for their work in the investigation.  Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher J. Romano and Kim Y. Oldham, who prosecuted the case.