(Cincinnati, OH)--A local man is pleading guilty to the country's first federal carfentanil case.
Phillip Watkins, 31, of Cincinnati was charged with distributing heroin laced with the drug that's sometimes used to tranquilize elephants.
Prosecutors say while he was awaiting trial, Watkins tried to have a witness murdered. He was indicted on witness tampering charges earlier this year.
Watkins and Jeanetta Crawford, 26, were accused of selling the tainted heroin from their Carthage home.
Officers found out about their operation after an overdose in Springfield Township.
Charges against Crawford were dismissed last year.
(This article contains information from Metrosource News)