Paso Robles couple charged with distributing fentanyl resulting in a death in May of last year
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Jessica Leigh Alalia of Paso Robles was arraigned Wednesday on a federal grand jury indictment alleging she knowingly distributed fentanyl which resulted in a fatal overdose in May of 2023.
The 30-year-old Paso Robles resident, also known as Jessica Mitchell, was arrested on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024, and was arraigned the next day on the eight-count indictment detail the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Alalia's boyfriend, Damian Naudh Lagunas-Garcia, 37, of Paso Robles, was also arraigned on Wednesday after his arrest on Sunday, Jan. 13, 2024, state the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Both Alalia and Lagunas-Garcia plead not guilty to all charges and a trial has been scheduled for Mar. 12 of this year detail the U.S. Attorney's Office.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, both Alalia and Lagunas-Garcia are currently in federal custody and each has a detention hearing scheduled for Jan. 22,2024.
Alalia is charged with one count of distributing fentanyl resulting in a death and both are charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl, one count of knowingly maintaining a drug-involved premises, two counts of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, two counts of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, and one count of possession of firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking detail the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The indictment, returned on Jan. 11, alleges that Alalia knowingly and intentionally distributed fentanyl on May 6 of 2023 which resulted in the death of a person only identified in court documents as "R.S.".
The indictment also alleges that from January of 2023 to August of the same year, Alalia and Lagunas-Garcia conspired to distribute methamphetamine and fentanyl and used their Paso Robles house to store, pack, and facilitate narcotics distribution.
The pair coordinated their alleged efforts using coded language via text messages -such as using the letter 'F' for fentanyl-with each other as well as customers detail the indictment.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the pair allegedly used a storage unit in Templeton to also store, pack, and distribute narcotics and possessed multiple firearms inside their house to protect their drug proceeds and narcotics enterprise.
If convicted of all charges, each would face a statutory maximum sentence of life in federal prison state the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Alalia would also face a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in federal prison for the count of distribution of fentanyl resulting in death and Lagunas-Garcia would face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison for the drug conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine counts detail the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The Drug Enforcement Administration's Overdose Justice Task Force and the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office investigated this case and Assistant United States Attorneys Daniel H. Weiner and Alexandra Michael with the General Crimes Section are prosecuting the case.
