(Council Bluffs) The remaining defendants in a deadly fentanyl distribution network were sentenced to federal prison Wednesday for a variety of crimes.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa says a total of eleven defendants were sentenced.
- Kyrell Deshawn Wells, 21, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced to 360 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl on October 18, 2023;
- Ja’cara P. Baker, 42, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced to 300 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl on October 18, 2023;
- Alejandro Diaz, 34, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced to 216 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl Resulting in Death or Serious Bodily Injury, and Carrying a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on March 16, 2023;
- Janelle Lee Cline, 31, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced to 156 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl Resulting in Death or Serious Bodily Injury on February 16, 2023;
- Christian Blaize Arman, 29, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced to 42 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl on December 12, 2023;
- Edward James Arman, 32, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced to 42 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl on December 12, 2023;
- Samantha Mae Neemann, 35, of Lincoln, Nebraska, was sentenced to 168 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl Resulting in Death or Serious Bodily Injury on April 13, 2023;
- Hai D. Nguyen, 30, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced to 45 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl on April 13, 2023;
- Megan Kayleen Johnson, 27, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, was sentenced to 168 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl Resulting in Death or Serious Bodily Injury on March 16, 2023;
- Richard Andrew Null, 26, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, sentenced to 150 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl, and Carrying a Firearm in Furtherance of a Drug Trafficking Crime on December 12, 2023; and
- Jarik Mathew McPherson, 30, of Council Bluffs, Iowa, sentenced to 120 months in prison for Conspiracy to Distribute Fentanyl on December 12, 2023.
This investigation began in January 2022, after the Council Bluffs Police and Fire Departments responded to a Council Bluffs residence where an adult female had overdosed on fentanyl. After that victim died, law enforcement began a lengthy investigation into individuals who were actively conspiring to distribute fentanyl in the Omaha and Council Bluffs metro area. Ultimately, investigators identified Kyrell Wells and Ja’cara Baker as the primary distributors of fentanyl to others, including the members of the conspiracy listed above. The fentanyl pills distributed by this organization in the Omaha, Lincoln, and Council Bluffs areas resulted in at least eleven overdoses and six deaths. Kyrell Wells, Alejandro Diaz, Hai Nguyen, and Richard Null were also found in possession of firearms.
