Fentanyl dealer taught 13-year-old North Texas girl to snort pills. She died days later.
A drug distributor tied to the fentanyl overdose death of a North Texas middle schooler pleaded guilty to a federal drug charge Thursday, officials said.
Court records show that Rafael Soliz Jr., 23, admitted selling fentanyl to both dealers and users, including children, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas. Soliz was indicted in March and on Thursday he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute fentanyl.
A 13-year-old Carrollton girl who died of a fentanyl overdose in December had purchased pills from Soliz, according to the release.
U.S. Attorney Leigha Simonton of the Northern District of Texas said her heart aches for the teenage victim.
“The defendant not only sold her fentanyl but also taught her how to ingest it,” Simonton said in the release. “In essence, he encouraged a mere child to snort a terrifyingly potent, highly addictive drug — and then urged her to cover for him with law enforcement.”
Soliz communicated with his customers via Instagram. On Nov. 30 he agreed to sell “percs” to the 13-year-old, who had reached out to him over Instagram. Soliz brought the pills to her home and taught her how to snort them, the release said.
A few days later he found out the girl’s age but agreed to continue selling to her if she wouldn’t reveal the name of her dealer if she got caught. On Dec. 9 he advised her to use Instagram vanish mode and delete their chat.
The teen was found dead in her bedroom two days later from a fatal combination of fentanyl and cough medicine.
Soliz confessed to selling approximately 1,500 fentanyl-laced pills to adults and teens, including the 13-year-old victim, the release said. He also said he’d dealt hundreds of pills to Luis Eduardo Navarrete, a trafficker who was charged in February in connection with North Texas juvenile overdoses.
Soliz is the fifth defendant charged in connection with the North Texas juvenile overdoses to plead guilty. Jason Xavier Villanueva, Magaly Cano, Donovan Jude Andrews and Stephen Brinson pleaded guilty earlier this year, according to the release. Navarrete and two other defendants have been charged but not convicted.
Soliz could face up to 40 years in prison. He may also have to testify in court under the terms of his plea agreement, officials said.
Authorities warn that fentanyl-laced pills look similar to prescription pills like Percocet or Oxycontin, but are significantly more dangerous. Street names for these illicitly produced pills include “blues,” “perks,” “yerks,” “china girls” or “TNT.” They are also commonly referred to as “M30s” due to the marking on some of the pills.
Six out of 10 fentanyl-laced pills contain a potentially lethal dose, according to the Drug Enforcement Agency.
