An Independence, Missouri, man was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison without parole for his involvement in a fentanyl distribution conspiracy and illegal firearm possession. Wiser Key, 25, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roseann Ketchmark.
Key pleaded guilty on March 27, 2024, to one count of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. He admitted to participating in multiple drug transactions with an undercover officer. In one instance, Key sold 1,000 counterfeit oxycodone tablets containing fentanyl for $8,500. In another transaction, he received $6,000 for 750 counterfeit oxycodone pills, also containing fentanyl.
On April 30, 2021, law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Key’s residence, discovering numerous plastic bags containing counterfeit pills, approximately 8 kilograms of suspected THC wax, 39 grams of suspected cocaine, several bags of marijuana, and firearms including an FN handgun, a loaded Glock .40-caliber handgun, a loaded Springfield 9mm handgun, a loaded Sig Sauer .40-caliber handgun, and a Harrington and Richardson 20-gauge shotgun. Officers also recovered $24,676 in cash.
Court documents reveal that Key distributed at least 120,000 counterfeit pills containing fentanyl throughout the conspiracy. He and a co-defendant obtained between 4,000 to 5,000 pills at a time from suppliers in Mexico.
Key is the first defendant sentenced in the case. Co-defendants Nilolas Albright, 30, of Cameron, Missouri, and Demasjiay Cruse, 25, of St. Joseph, Missouri, have also pleaded guilty to their roles in the drug trafficking conspiracy and await sentencing.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Maureen A. Brackett, Stephanie C. Bradshaw, and John C. Constance. The investigation involved the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the FBI, IRS-Criminal Investigation, Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department, Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department, Buchanan County Sheriff’s Department, and the St. Joseph Police Department.
