New Castle Woman Sentenced to Two-and-a-Half Years in Prison for Fentanyl, Heroin, and Cocaine Trafficking

PITTSBURGH, Pa. - A resident of New Castle, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 30 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, on her conviction of violating federal drug trafficking laws as part of a Homeland Security Task Force prosecution, United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

United States District Judge Robert J. Colville imposed the sentence on Alexis Donnell, 30, who previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine between August 2023 and August 2024.

According to information presented to the Court, Donnell was part of a drug trafficking conspiracy that was based in Detroit, Michigan, and in New Castle. Donnell participated in the conspiracy by retailing fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine to her customers in both Lawrence County and Beaver County, Pennsylvania. Donnell had several prior convictions for crimes involving violence, drugs, and theft.

Assistant United States Attorneys Craig W. Haller and V. Joseph Sonson prosecuted this case on behalf of the United States.

United States Attorney Rivetti commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, Lawrence County Drug Task Force, New Castle Police Department, Michigan State Police, Pennsylvania State Police, Mercer County Drug Task Force, United States Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and Douglas County (Nebraska) Sheriff's Office for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Donnell.

This prosecution was part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement toward identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations that have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.