A 22-year-old Las Vegas man has pleaded guilty to distributing fentanyl pills that caused the near fatal overdose of a Park City resident in a plea bargain that calls for him to serve 20 years in prison.
Colin Andrew Shapard — who prosecutors allege was the source of drugs that led to the deaths of two teens in 2016 in an unrelated case — admitted he mailed numerous pills to an 18-year-old who lost consciousness after taking them on Feb. 10, 2022. Emergency medical personnel who responded to a call from his father administered Narcan, which reverses the effects of fentanyl and other opioids, and the victim survived.
The blue pills were stamped with “M” and “30,” consistent with the appearance of oxycodone pills. Testing revealed the pills were fentanyl-laced fake oxycodone, court documents say.
Shapard, who used to live in Park City, entered a plea in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City on Friday to one count of distribution of a controlled substance that resulted in serious bodily injury. Under the plea deal, five counts of distribution of a controlled substance are to be dismissed at sentencing, which is set for April 4.
If the sentencing judge rejects the plea agreement and determines that a sentence of more than 20 years will be imposed, Shapard will have the right to withdraw his plea and go to trial. The U.S. Attorney’s Office will be able to vacate the plea deal if there is a determination the sentence should be shorter.
A U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration task force learned in November 2021 of shipments of illegal narcotics with opioids to Park City from Las Vegas and Shapard was believed to be the sender, court documents say. The shipments, which were made twice a month over a period of two or three months, allegedly contained up to 30 fake oxycodone pills that sold from between $30 and $45 each.
An undercover agent with the DEA placed an order with Shapard for oxycodone pills, which arrived on Feb. 4, 2022, and tests showed they contained fentanyl, the court documents say. Shapard has admitted the pills he sent to the 18-year-old in Park City also had fentanyl.
The DEA task force included officers from the United States Postal Inspector Service, Park City Police Department and Summit County Sheriff’s Office.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Utah brought charges against Shapard in March 2022 and filed a motion asking that he be detained pending trial, which was granted.
The motion alleged Shapard had worked for the past eight years as a “sophisticated seller of deadly opioids” who shows no remorse for the harm his drugs have caused in the past and is also a flight risk.
In 2016, Shapard set up two cryptocurrency wallets to purchase a powerful synthetic opioid called U-47700 from a dark web vendor, then mixed it into bottles of mouth and nasal spray, which he distributed to juveniles in the Park City area, according to the motion.
At the time, the drug — which is nicknamed “pink” or “pinky” — was not illegal to purchase. The DEA made U-47700 a Schedule I substance in November 2016, which meant it may not be prescribed, dispensed or administered.
Two 13-year-old boys — friends who were Treasure Mountain Junior High students — died within a few days of each other in September 2016 from overdosing on U-47700, which had come from Shapard, prosecutors alleged.
As investigators were closing in on Shapard, who was then a minor, he was flown by his father out of the jurisdiction to Hawaii, the motion said.
Shapard ultimately was prosecuted in the juvenile court system and felony charges were dismissed. He pleaded to a charge of reckless endangerment, a misdemeanor, and was placed on probation and ordered into drug treatment.
“As an adult, Shapard has continued to supply youth in Utah with deadly controlled substances,” the motion alleged.
A high school student who was using drugs supplied by Shapard told investigators he asked him whether he ever thinks about the parents who lost their kids because of the drugs Shapard distributed, the motion said.
He laughed and said no, according to the student.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office also alleged in the motion Shapard misled his customers by claiming his pills were legitimate pharmaceutical pills containing oxycodone, not fentanyl, which needlessly endangered lives.
In a text message exchange with an undercover agent, Shapard sought to reassure her that he was not going to leave her without a drug source of supply, according to the motion. He wrote, “I mean, with all the sh– I run, it can’t ever stop—so don’t worry im training someone to take my place.”
In the wake of the deaths of the two boys who overdosed, a group of parents formed the nonprofit CONNECT Summit County to find a way to connect people with mental health and substance abuse resources before a problem evolved into a crisis. CONNECT expanded through community support and created programs such as the peer navigation service to match people to services and a mental health resource guide, as well as various support groups.
After seven years of providing help, the organization closed on Sept. 30, saying there are many more groups in Summit County dedicated to providing support and services than when CONNECT began. Executive Director Julya Sembrat said the nonprofit did not want to duplicate services that already existed and it was time to allow bigger, more sustainable organizations to continue the work.