Lackawanna County Man Sentenced To Life Imprisonment For Drug Distribution Resulting In Death

SCRANTON—The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that United States Judge Malachy E. Mannion sentenced Robert Jackson, age 45, of Scranton, Pennsylvania, to life imprisonment for the distribution of a controlled substance resulting in death. 

According to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Jackson was found guilty of multiple federal crimes on February 8, 2022, following a six-day jury trial before Judge Mannion.  Jackson was specifically found guilty for his sale of fentanyl on July 25, 2020, which resulted in the death of a 58-year-old Monroe County man.  Jackson was also found guilty of conspiracy to distribute controlled substances resulting in death and possession with intent to distribute controlled substances.

During the trial, prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office presented the testimony of Dr. Rameen Starling-Roney, a Forensic Pathologist, and Dr. Michael Coyer, a Forensic Toxicologist, who opined that fentanyl caused the death of the Monroe County man.  Additional testimony was provided by officers and detectives from the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, the Pocono Mountain Regional Police Department, and the FBI – Scranton Office who testified that Jackson sold fentanyl to the victim in the evening of July 25, 2020, resulting in his death on July 28, 2020. 

The life sentence imposed by Judge Mannion was mandated pursuant to federal law for defendants found guilty of distributing a controlled substance resulting in death, after having previously been convicted of a felony drug offense.  Jackson’s criminal history involved multiple felony drug offenses, which also rendered him a career offender under federal law.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Scranton, the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, and the Pocono Mountain Regional Police Department.  Assistant United States Attorneys Michelle Olshefski and Robert O’Hara prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of a district wide initiative to combat the nationwide epidemic regarding the use and distribution of heroin and other opioids. Led by the United States Attorney’s Office, the Heroin Initiative targets heroin and opioid traffickers operating in the Middle District of Pennsylvania and is part of a coordinated effort among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who commit heroin related offenses.

# # #