Department of Justice

SCRANTON, Pa. — The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced today that Dexter Yard, 36, of Wilkes-Barre, pleaded guilty on March 8 before U.S. District Court Judge Robert D. Mariani, to the charge of distributing fentanyl and cocaine.

According to U.S. Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Yard admitted that on Aug. 17, 2021, he distributed fentanyl and cocaine to another individual in Luzerne County. The charge stems from an incident in which members of the Wilkes-Barre Police Department and the Pennsylvania State Police made a purchase of fentanyl and cocaine from Yard, and then arrested him. A search of the vehicle Yard was driving resulted in the seizure of a fully loaded .38 caliber handgun, drug paraphernalia and the money police used to purchase the drugs from Yard.

The charge against the defendant resulted from an investigation conducted by the Wilkes-Barre Police Department, the Pennsylvania State Police, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. O’Hara is prosecuting the case.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department of Justice launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities and measuring the results.

Under federal law, Yard faces a maximum sentence of 20 years, a term of supervised release and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.\

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