She provided heroin to another person who died.
Baltimore, Md (KM) A woman who supplied heroin to another person who later died is going off to prison. Erica Lee Buffolino, 25, of Hagerstown was sentenced on Wednesday in US District Court in Baltimore to 71-months behind bars. She will also be put on three-years supervised release when she gets out of prison.
Buffolino pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute heroin and distribution of heroin.
US Attorney for Maryland Rod Rosenstein says Buffolino provided heroin to a 19-year-old woman from Clear Spring on April 13th, 2015. “And Miss Buffolino knew that the victim was a recovering heroin addict who had been recently released from jail. But Miss Buffolino ultimately agreed to share some heroin with the victim who injected the heroin and became high as a result of using that heroin,” he says.
According to Buffolino’s plea, the victim asked for more heroin. She became very high and reported feeling ill had to lie down. Buffolino woke up the victim after noticing she was having trouble breathing.
The victim left the residence after getting into an argument with Buffolino. She was found deceased the next day in her car which was parked in a church parking lot.
The Maryland State Medical Examiner determined the victim died form heroin intoxication.
Rosenstein says this incident should remind citizens about the danger of heroin, and that it’s a more potent drug than in past years. “Number one, the purity of the heroin is increasing. Number two, the heroin often is often tainted or adulterated with fentenyl or other drugs that make it even more dangerous to the user. It’s uncontrolled in terms of the potency of the drug,” he says.
US Attorney Rosenstein urges anyone who has a heroin addiction to get help quickly. “We’re trying to get out the word that people who are using heroin or oxycodone need to get treatment. If you have a family member, a relative or friend using these drugs, you need to get them treated,” he says.
A co-defendant in the case, Cory Kline of Hagerstown, is serving an eight-year sentence after pleading guilty to conspiracy to distribute heroin.