Austin Lloyd Kerns, 54, of Fresno, was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Kirk E. Sherriff to 12 years in prison for conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced in a news release.

According to court documents, the investigation began following a fatal fentanyl overdose of a 24-year-old Fresno man. The victim died after using counterfeit oxycodone M30 tablets containing fentanyl that he obtained directly from Mr. Kerns after being referred by a co-conspirator.

Kerns sold the victim 16 pills in three separate deals over two days, with one of these pills ultimately taking the victim’s life. Kerns pleaded guilty to conspiring with his codefendant, Lakota Tehya Wakley, 22, of Clovis, to sell fentanyl to users like the victim referred by Wakley. Kerns would in turn sell the buyers fentanyl pills and send Wakley a cut of the profits earned from the sales.

During this distribution conspiracy, Kerns was out on bail in a pending criminal case before the Fresno County Superior Court on charges of distributing methamphetamine.

Kerns, who was detained pending the proceedings against him, was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service to serve his sentence.

This case was the product of an investigation by Fentanyl Overdose Resolution Team, a multi-agency team composed of Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Fresno Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Calvin Lee prosecuted the case.