Two Mahoning Valley men suspected of having fentanyl shipped to Youngstown

YOUNGSTOWN

Law enforcement officers arrested two Mahoning Valley men for attempted possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute, the Northern District of Ohio U.S. Attorney’s Office announced today.

Michael B. Lawrence, 43, of Youngstown and Dainon L. Jones, 37, of Girard, were arrested after law enforcement said they accepted a package from China “that they believed contained approximately 273 grams of methoxyacetyl fentanyl,” according to a news release.

“The amount of fentanyl these defendants are accused of bringing to downtown Youngstown from China could have killed hundreds of people,” said U.S. Attorney Justin E. Herdman. “Aggressive enforcement, combined with increased prevention and education efforts, is our best chance to turn the tide on this epidemic.

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations special agents, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Customers and Border Protection, the Mahoning Valley Law Enforcement Task Force, the TAG Drug Task Force and the Drug Enforcement Administration. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Toepfer.