GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WLNS) — A Grand Rapids man was sentenced to 20 years in prison for distributing fentanyl that caused the death of a Kent County man in August 2020.
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Mark Totten announced on Friday that Tommy Terrell Mims, 52, has been sentenced to 240 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Paul L. Maloney.
After Mims is released from prison, he will be on supervised release for a further 25 years.
“Fentanyl is deadly and continues to devastate our families and communities. This drug is so dangerous that even a trace amount can leave a user dead within minutes,” said Totten in a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
On Aug. 8, 2020, Grand Rapids Police Department and emergency medical workers responded to a 9-1-1 call that “H.C.” was unconscious and not breathing.
Investigation showed that the 911 caller and “H.C.” had purchased and used what they thought was heroin, but which was actually fentanyl, from Mims the previous night.
H.C. eventually died from fentanyl toxicity.
Mims pleaded guilty to distribution of fentanyl resulting in H.C.’s death in Feb. 10, 2023.
“The lengthy sentence imposed on Mr. Mims reflects the seriousness of the charge to which he pled guilty,” said Orville O. Greene, Special Agent in Charge of Detroit Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration.
“Mims actively contributed to the drug poisoning and overdose epidemic ravaging our communities and our country,” Greene continued.
