A Taylorsville man was arrested and charged on a criminal complaint Tuesday after allegedly selling fentanyl to an undercover FBI agent.
Representatives of the Department of Justice said that the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah filed the complaint Jan. 31, charging Flavio Cesar Mazariegos Covarrubias with possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute after he was found to be a lead subject in a drug trafficking case that was being investigated by the FBI's Wasatch Metro Drug Task Force.
According to court documents, the organization in question was believed to be distributing large quantities of narcotics throughout Utah.
Authorities said that Covarrubias' sale and distribution of fentanyl to an undercover agent ultimately led to his arrest.
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FBI agents reportedly seized 5,000 blue-colored pills along with 40 brightly-colored pills that were in Covarrubias' possession which field-tested positive for fentanyl. Officials noted that these brightly-colored fentanyl pills often go by the street name "rainbow fentanyl" or "skittles," as they're designed to look like candy in order to entice young people.
Department of Justice representatives shared that Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen L. Nelson for the District of Utah will be prosecuting this case moving forward while the FBI will continue their overarching investigation of Covarrubias and the alleged drug trafficking organization he was found to be involved with.