Sandusky man guilty of fentanyl trafficking after fatal overdose

MARION, Ohio (WCMH) -- A Sandusky man was found guilty of trafficking fentanyl after an alleged buyer overdosed.

Joseph Smith of Sandusky, Ohio, was found guilty of corrupting another with drugs and trafficking fentanyl yesterday in the Marion County Common Pleas Court. According to the Marion County Prosecutor, on June 18th, 2022, Smith supplied Daniel Griffith with pills laced with fentanyl, which caused him to overdose.

A media release from the Prosecutor's office details how authorities were able to piece together who sold Griffith the lethal drug mixture. Surveillance video from a gas station allegedly shows Smith exchanging pills with Griffith, along with text messages and phone calls between the two men.

Through their investigation, authorities determined Griffith and his girlfriend traveled to Sandusky to purchase what they believed to be Percocet pills. After allegedly making the exchange with Smith, Griffith returned home to his home in Marion.

Griffith's girlfriend discovered him unresponsive some time later, and he was pronounced deceased. The Prosecutor's office states that analysis performed on the pills sold to Griffith confirmed they were laced with fentanyl.

"This conviction strikes at the heart of the fentanyl crisis that we are facing; a crisis that is killing our residents," said Marion County Prosecuting Attorney Ray Grogan. "Smith peddled poison disguised as painkillers, and we held him accountable."

Smith will remain in custody as his sentencing date is still pending.