Three Denver residents have been indicted on federal charges relating to a tragic fentanyl overdose, as the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announced a significant development in the battle against the opioid crisis. The accused, Felicia Ortiviz, Joe Elijo Herrera, and Alina Serena Ochoa-Luna, are facing a conspiracy charge for distributing fentanyl, which resulted in death; Ochoa-Luna has also been charged with direct distribution leading to death, while Ortiviz faces an additional charge of selling to a minor. These allegations, detailed by the U.S. Department of Justice, signal a continued effort by authorities to curtail the alarming rise of fentanyl-related fatalities.
The case revolves around a series of events that took place between September 2023 and February 2024, where Herrera initially provided the illicit “blues” street lingo for counterfeit M/30 pills laced with deadly fentanyl to the victim following their nineteenth birthday and then passed the dealings onto Ortiviz, who continued the transactions until Ochoa-Luna delivered a fatal dose to Ortiviz, it was on the night of February 13, 2024, Ortiviz dispensed the fatal substances to the young individual who later succumbed to their toxic effects at their student housing complex. As per the U.S. Department of Justice, “Herrera allegedly started dealing ‘blues’ to the victim in September 2023, shortly after the victim’s nineteenth birthday… Ortiviz distributed blues to the victim at the same residence” on the night of the fatal overdose…