Pittsburgh Review

PITTSBURGH, Pa. – A resident of Farrell, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced to 235 months in federal prison on his conviction of fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine trafficking crimes, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced today.

United States District Judge Cathy Bissoon imposed the sentence on Quinton Pinkins, 39, also ordering Pinkins to serve six years of supervised release following his prison sentence. Pinkins previously pleaded guilty in this case to conspiring to distribute at least 400 grams of fentanyl, 100 grams of heroin, and 500 grams of cocaine between June 2020 and June 2021, and to distributing fentanyl within 1,000 feet of public playground and housing authority properties on May 27, 2021.

According to information presented to the Court, Pinkins was a leader of a drug trafficking organization in Mercer County, Pennsylvania, and was responsible for the distribution of 1.2 kilograms of fentanyl, 100 grams of heroin, and 500 grams of cocaine during 2020 and 2021. The Court was further informed that by May 2021 Pinkins was aware that his fentanyl dealing had resulted in the recent death of one customer and the hospitalization of another but continued dealing the drug in Mercer County and even expanded his fentanyl dealing to Erie County. Prior to 2020, Pinkins had been convicted for heroin and cocaine trafficking and sentenced to incarceration in two separate Pennsylvania prosecutions in 2009 and 2018.

Assistant United States Attorneys Craig W. Haller and Benjamin C. Dobkin prosecuted this case on behalf of the United States.

United States Attorney Olshan commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General (OAG), Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Pennsylvania State Police (PSP), Lawrence County Drug Task Force (LCDTF), Mercer County Drug Task Force (MCDTF), New Castle Police Department (NCPD), Sharon Police Department (SPD), Hermitage Police Department (HPD) ,and Farrell Police Department (FPD) for their investigation leading to the successful prosecution.

This prosecution is a result of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies disrupts,and dismantles high-level drug traffickers money launderers gangs,and transnational criminal organizations that threaten communities throughout the United States OCDETF uses a prosecutor-led intelligence-driven multi-agency approach that leverages strengths from federal state,and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks