Large-Scale Counterfeit Fentanyl Pill Dealer Sentenced To 30 Years In Prison

Tampa, FL – United States District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington has sentenced Dion Gregory Fisher (33, formerly of Seminole) to 30 years in federal prison for conspiring to manufacture and distribute fentanyl and fentanyl analogue, and money laundering. Fisher was also ordered to forfeit several high-end vehicles, including an Aston Martin and Audi R8, and a forfeiture money order of nearly $800,000 was entered against him. A federal jury had found Fisher guilty on June 5, 2019.

According to testimony and evidence presented during the seven-day trial, Fisher and others, including co-defendant Christopher McKinney, manufactured and distributed hundreds of thousands of counterfeit oxycodone 30 mg pills that were made with fentanyl that Fisher had ordered from China. Fisher also ordered pill presses from China, some of which were seized by Homeland Security. He also purchased binding and cutting agents used in the manufacturing process.

Another co-defendant, Samuel Huffman, used the pill presses and materials supplied by Fisher to press fentanyl pills out of his automotive business in Pinellas Park. Huffman pleaded guilty to the fentanyl conspiracy on October 9, 2018, testified against Fisher at trial, and was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison on June 24, 2019.

Fisher also stored fentanyl and fentanyl analogue in a work bay in Clearwater. In January and February 2018, large quantities of fentanyl and fentanyl analogue were seized from these locations, as well as from Fisher’s residence in Seminole, and McKinney’s residence and work bay. More than three kilograms of fentanyl and fentanyl analogue were admitted into evidence during the trial. On July 2, 2018, Christopher McKinney pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute and manufacture fentanyl and fentanyl analogue. McKinney forfeited $1.4 million in cash, two residences, and several high-end vehicles/motorcycle. McKinney testified against Fisher at trial, and was sentenced to 2 years in federal prison on June 28, 2019. 

Fisher and McKinney sold hundreds of thousands of counterfeit oxycodone pills, mostly via the U.S. Mail, to Phil Morose in Boston. Morose then distributed the pills. Morose was charged with conspiring to distribute and manufacture fentanyl and fentanyl analogue. He pleaded guilty to these charges and was sentenced on July 8, 2019, to 10 years in federal prison. He is also currently facing money laundering charges in Boston.

In addition, Fisher laundered the proceeds from his fentanyl pill sales with Konrad Guzewicz, who owned and operated automotive and tire-and-rim companies in Pinellas County. Fisher purchased several high-end luxury vehicles, including an Aston Martin, a Bentley, a Maserati, a BMW, and an Audi R8, using fentanyl proceeds. Guzewicz also laundered fentanyl cash proceeds for Fisher. On four occasions, Fisher provided Guzewicz with $35,000 in cash that he had obtained from selling fentanyl pills, and Guzewicz, in turn, wrote Fisher a check for $30,000 from his business and personal accounts. Guzewicz pleaded guilty to money laundering charges on June 28, 2018, testified against Fisher at trial, and was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison on July 2, 2019.

This case was investigated by the Middle District of Florida Opioid Fraud and Abuse Detection Unit, a Department of Justice program created to help combat the devastating opioid crisis that is ravaging families and communities across America and to prosecute individuals that are contributing to the opioid epidemic. The investigative agencies included the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, the Pinellas Park Police Department, the Tarpon Springs Police Department, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and IRS – Criminal Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kelley Howard-Allen, Maria Guzman, and Greg Pizzo.