A La Jolla man has pleaded guilty to distributing drugs that contained fentanyl, causing two fatal overdoses to men in Hillcrest and Clairemont.
Jonathan Tyler Gauthier, 26, will be sentenced on July 3 by U.S. District Court Judge Janis Sammartino. He waived his right to argue for bail at a detention hearing and remains in a federal facility without bail.
Gauthier could receive a maximum term of 20 years in federal prison for each victim, who were only identified by initials in federal court records.
Gauthier, who had previously worked in sales and accounting, may also be ordered to pay restitution to the victim’s families.
A 24-year-old man identified only as “S.M.G.” was found dead in his upstairs bedroom in Hillcrest on Sept. 7, 2022, from a fatal overdose of fentanyl contained in drugs Gauthier sold him, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
S.M.G. actually traveled to La Jolla to obtain the drugs from Gauthier the day before. Gauthier warned S.M.G. he was selling “a potent batch” of the drug.
“Ur being careful,” texted Gauthier about the drug, with S.M.G. replying “Yes” at 9:30 p.m.
A second man, identified only as J.A.W., died on Dec. 24, 2022 in a North Clairemont residence when his mother found him not breathing early that morning and called police. Next to his body were a piece of foil with burnt residue on it and a white pipe with a charred blue pill on its tip, police said.
On the floor next to the bed of J.A.W. was a small bag that contained eight blue pills, and later tests showed the pills contained fentanyl, according to court records. J.A.W. had messaged Gauthier about purchasing a drug called “blues.”
Over four days, J.A.W. and Gauthier settled on the price of $80 for 10 blues. J.A.W. met Gauthier at his storage unit to complete the purchase, according to documents.
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