A Michigan City man has been sentenced in U.S. District Court after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking.

Rico Marion, 44 was ordered to serve 444 months in prison followed by 5 years of supervised release.

According to court documents, from June through mid-August 2021, Marion conspired with others to distribute fentanyl in the Michigan City area. Marion sold pills purporting to be oxycodone that were actually fentanyl and he possessed numerous firearms during the length of the conspiracy. In August 2021, Marion and a co-defendant were caught traveling back to Michigan City with over a kilogram of fentanyl pills.

“Today’s 37 year sentence was imposed on Mr. Marion for his role in distributing hundreds of grams of fentanyl to the streets of Northern Indiana,” said United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson. “Fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine meaning as little as 2 milligrams can kill. Our federal, state and local law enforcement partners are focused on dismantling organizations that distribute this deadly illicit drug.”