“Investigating, arresting and prosecuting those who sell fentanyl that results in fatal overdoses sends a clear message to those who engaged in this deadly, illegal activity. This criminal activity is taking lives and hurting families.” – CSLEA President Alan Barcelona
SAN DIEGO—On January 13, 2023, Alexander Michael Randise, 29, of Ocean Beach was sentenced in federal court to 188 months in prison for distribution of fentanyl that resulted in the fatal overdose of 30-year-old Tyber Joseph Lustig.
According to his plea agreement, Randise admitted providing four counterfeit M-30 pills laced with fentanyl, commonly referred to as “blues,” to Lustig on December 11, 2021. These pills caused Lustig to have a fatal overdose. Randise had been selling counterfeit M-30 pills laced with fentanyl to Lustig and others for at least one year prior to Lustig’s death. Randise instructed Lustig in a drug transaction approximately one year prior to Lustig’s death that Lustig needed to “be careful” because the pills were “[really] strong.”
On January 5, 2022, law enforcement officials conducted a search of two of Randise’s residences in Ocean Beach. During the search, authorities seized approximately 680 counterfeit M-30 pills laced with fentanyl, 2.33 grams of cocaine, suspected MDMA, $1,175 in U.S. currency, and a loaded 9-millimeter non-serialized handgun.
Special Agents and Task Force Officers with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Overdose Response Team led the investigation into Lustig’s death. This case is the result of ongoing efforts by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the San Diego Police Department, and the California Department of Health Care Services to investigate and prosecute the distribution of dangerous illegal drugs—fentanyl in particular—that result in overdose deaths.
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Distribution of Fentanyl – Title 21, United States Code, Sections 841(a) and (b)(1)(C)
Maximum Penalty: Twenty years in prison
